


Decidedly Not Detrimental

by DragonWannabe



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: F/M, M/M, Slow Burn, Soulmates, i am not witty enough to write Tony dialogue, probably slightly ooc
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-05-19
Updated: 2014-07-24
Packaged: 2018-01-25 16:22:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 28,952
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1654862
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DragonWannabe/pseuds/DragonWannabe
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ever since the battle of New York, Tony had been plagued with headaches and nightmares. The nightmares he attributed to falling to his death, twice, as well as flying up into the Void. The rough awakening at the hands of the Hulk didn’t help. </p><p>He attributed the headaches to the concussion that not even his suit could prevent from happening.</p><p>OR</p><p>Tony gets himself an angsty soulmate who tried to kill him once or twice or three times if you include the bomb he sent through the portal.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters, they belong to Marvel and no copyright infringement is intended.

Ever since the battle of New York, Tony had been plagued with headaches and nightmares. The nightmares he attributed to falling to his death, twice, as well as flying up into the Void. The rough awakening at the hands of the Hulk didn’t help. 

He attributed the headaches to the concussion that not even his suit could prevent from happening. It had been weeks, but once Tony had gotten the “all clear” from his doctor, to take it easy, and not sleep for more than four hours, he hadn’t been back, not even at Pepper’s insistence. He knew that this was probably detrimental to his health, but he couldn’t be bothered to care. He was drinking himself to an early grave, a concussion or two wasn’t going to hurt him, not too much.

Or at least, that was his plan before Nick Fury showed up to Stark Tower and demanded he go see a doctor once a week from here on out until the director himself said he could stop. And if Tony wouldn’t comply with these rules, Fury would remove each suit from his possession until he _did_ comply. And no matter how well Jarvis was coded, Fury probably could, and most definitely would, remove the suits from Tony’s possession.

And so he acquiesced with hardly a fight. Tony was nothing if not smart, and while he generally would have fought the order, he could spot a lost battle when he saw it. Never mind the fact that the headaches were turning into migraines, which just _would not go away_. Maybe the doctor could prescribe something. That’s what doctors were for, right?

Most of his time was spent in his workshop, figuring out ways that he could make his suit react faster, to prevent a second nosedive into the streets of Manhattan. He had woken up just before he was to hit the street, no suit to save him, the deranged cackling of the God of Lies ringing in his ears.

The sudden wakening would leave him disoriented for a few moments, and the first time it happened he started to cry, just like he had when he first got back from Afghanistan. The stress of reliving the worst moments of his life made him panic, and it took an hour for him to calm down, all desire to sleep gone. And ever since every time he tried to sleep, if he wasn’t so exhausted that he could stand on his feet, he would relive moments of pure terror. This pushed his resolve to sleep even less. Coffee could make up for it, it was _coffee_ , of course it could. The less he slept, the less he would relive the terror, and when he was finally so out of it that not even coffee could keep him awake more than five extra minutes, he would sleep on the couch in his lab, only for a few hours, until the fear forced him awake.

Once he woke up, he could feel a sense of longing, something lacking, something inside him yearned for comfort that wasn’t there, that never would be there. Comfort that no one could give him; no one would give him, save Pepper. But she had moved on, was no longer willing to share her life with him. And he couldn’t find it in himself to blame her for moving on. He was a mess, hardly made it into bed most nights. His libido had been nonexistent since the fight, and not even a buxom blonde could cause his favorite body part to stir.

Maybe the constant caffeine and lack of sleep _was_ taking its toll. He certainly didn’t feel up to fighting a rabbit, let alone a super villain. Maybe Fury was right to remove him from the Avengers roster, but no matter how much Fury may have been right, Tony couldn’t help but feel irritated. He didn’t want to acknowledge that he was weak. He most certainly didn’t want that news to fall into the wrong hands. Jarvis may have had the most developed security on the entire American continent, but knowing the news could be out there didn’t help him sleep. If anything, it made it worse, recognizing his weakness.

At this point, Tony felt that he would do anything to fix himself. He would even go to therapy if he thought it would help. The problem was he knew it wouldn’t. Talking with Pepper hadn’t helped, back when he returned from Afghanistan. Talking to a stranger about what went on inside his head seemed so much worse, so invasive. And there was always the possibility that that information would get into the wrong hands. That that information could be used to ruin him, to ruin his company. 

And so he would do anything. Anything but _that_.

So when Thor came back to their planet, and he requested to house a meeting in the tower, maybe he didn’t want news to get out that he was back, didn’t want the hordes of teenage girls running after him when he was needed elsewhere.

Of course, Tony allowed it. The tower had many, many rooms set up to house meetings, both for SHIELD and Stark Industries, with varying amounts of security. He didn’t want to waste resources on rooms that wouldn’t require it. He believed in overkill, despite the luxury he lived in, the riches he had. No one would believe him when he said that, hell, he had shoes that cost more than some people made in a month. But he thought that this was different. That was vanity; he could spend as much as he wanted on that. He could spend as much as he wanted on necessity too, but he tried to keep to a budget; the simple thing cut back unnecessary spending by half, easy, especially when he dictated the choices to someone else.

When he asked Jarvis to notify him of Thor’s arrival, he didn’t expect what the AI said.

“Both of your guests are here, sir.” Both? He had been expecting one, Thor. Maybe Jarvis had a bug that was screwing up what he said. Once, _if_ , this headache disappeared, he would get around to fixing it.

“Thank you, Jarvis. Tell him I’ll be down there in a sec.” He finished signing the document Pepper had sent over for him to sign and ambled over towards the elevator. Once the button was pressed, he started to fidget. 

_Woah, there. This was a simple meeting with Thor, who wanted god knows what. Probably a place to stay while on Earth. That would be cool. Tony could add ‘housed a god’ to the already mile-long list of accomplishments._ he thought, trying to stop his body from shifting back and forth. There was no reason for him to panic, to be anticipating the upcoming meeting, so he forced himself to stop. He was Tony Stark. He spent more time in meetings than Thor probably did, despite the fact that the god was thousands of years old. Meetings didn’t bother him. 

“Jarvis, turn down the lights a bit in the meeting room. Give him a little warning; don’t want to freak out the man unused to technology.” See? Even when he was in head splitting pain he thought of others. Definitely a philanthropist. 

“As you wish, sir.” Came the voice from overhead. 

When the lift arrived to the correct floor, Tony walked down it briskly, wanting it over with as soon as possible so he could go back to brainstorming in a dark, quiet room.

When he entered the room he didn’t bother to look around, simply assuming who the mystery guest was. He flopped down onto the most comfortable chair there, and before he could really register was coming out of his mouth he started to speak. “Hello, Blondie. How lovely to see you today.“ he stopped, looking around for the mystery guest. “I hope your trip was ple—what the hell is _he_ doing here? Point Break, why is your brother, who tried to kill me, in my house, without my knowledge?” 

Once he spotted the hunched over, handcuffed god on the opposite end of the room, he stopped midsentence, all pleasantries forgotten. 

“That’s why I’m here, Man of Iron. My brother… he is not well. And from what I understand neither are you.” Thor looked apprehensive as he spoke, trying to project calm, while being forceful in his words.

“So maybe I haven’t been in tip-top shape. What does that have to do with our favorite Bag of Cats?” Tony refused to take his eyes off the stooped god, remembering the crap he got up to the last time his visited their planet. 

Loki’s head shot up, eyes boring into Tony’s. A muzzle similar to the one he worse the last time Tony saw him covered his mouth. A sharp exhale of breath shot from his nose, and he glared at Thor. Long, unkempt hair fell past his shoulders, longer than Tony remembered. But all that was noticed after the look of abject misery that clouded his eyes. They looked red rimmed, as if he had been crying in the recent past.

But that wasn’t possible. Loki wouldn’t cry, he was too proud. Once he failed to take over Earth his first request was for that drink Tony had offered him. Tony couldn’t conceive the idea of the god crying. _There was no way that that was possible._

“Man of Iron, I ask you, to listen to what I have to say. You will be free to make your own choice, but the cure to your malady is here if you so wish it.” Thor said, looking at Tony. Turning his eyes from the miserable looking thing sitting at his table to the healthier looking god standing nearby, he nodded, urging Thor to continue. “I told you that my brother was adopted. He is from a race called the Jӧtuns, from the realm of Jӧtunheim. They are more commonly referred to as Frost Giants by my realm. All Frost Giants are born with magic, if just enough to secure their bondmate.”

He paused and looked at Tony, whose eyes darted towards the restrained figure to Thor’s left. Tony desperately didn’t want to see where this was leading.

“What… what does being a uh, ‘bondmate’ entail, exactly?” Tony said delicately. Because this was _Loki_ , guy who threw him out a window without a second thought, a guy who would do it again, a guy who wanted to rule Earth, and all of its inhabitants. That Loki.

“Bondmates are a lifelong bound pair on Jӧtunheim. They are supposed to be matched perfectly, both mentally and… physically.” Thor finished uncomfortably. Tony’s eyes widened.

“You’re kidding. Is this an elaborate joke? I must say I don’t think it’s very funny, bringing back him, and then stringing me along. How did you rope your father into doing that? I’m sure you and Rudolph here think this is hilarious. I _don’t_ , however. So tell me what’s really up, and why you dragged him back here? Why is he not at SHIELD head quarters, where he should be if he’s on this planet?” Tony spoke quickly, because surely this wasn’t true. He didn’t desire Loki, and he was 150% sure the god didn’t want him. 

Thor looked confused for a moment, and then he looked towards his sibling. “Man of Iron, bondmates do not choose their partners. This is no joke. And Loki is here because if he stays too far away from you much longer the both of you will die.

If Tony had been drinking anything, he would have choked on it. “What do you mean the ‘both of you will die’? I am a perfectly healthy man. There is nothing wrong with me. I am not dying. I might have persistent headaches, but those are just the result of the Battle.” They don’t mean anything, they _can’t_ not if it means what Thor is saying it does. That he is Loki’s bond whatever. His head hurt. Wasn’t that doctor supposed to prescribe him medication to fix that?

“You will not sleep without night terrors unless you agree to the bond. The lack of sleep, the pain in your head, it will eventually kill you. Soon. Your only hope is to stay within a close proximity to my brother, but even that will not last forever. You will be forced to consummate the bond eventually, but that can be pushed off for maybe another year or two. But you have to be with him.” Thor insisted.

“Fine. _Fine._ But what does he think about all of this? Hmm? Did he throw me out of my own window because he thought I would make a good partner and wanted to test my reflexes? Is that it? Because I don’t think that is acceptable courting by anyone’s rules.” Tony didn’t want this bond. Tony very much didn’t want this bond, so he didn’t understand the hurt that he felt at that thought.

“You can ask him if you would allow me to remove the muzzle around his mouth. He cannot perform spells, for my father allowed me to use magic dampening chains to bring him here. Some of the things he may say may not be the most… kind, however.” Thor warned, moving closer to his brother, who looked at him warily.

“Yeah, sure. Take off the thing around his mouth. And if you’re sure he’s no danger then I want you to leave. Stand outside the door if you want, but I want to speak to him. Alone.” Tony said, his mind made up. And there were some things he didn’t want to talk about with Thor around. Like how they most certainly weren’t going to fuck until the very last second and even then it would be a onetime thing that under no circumstances was to happen again because Tony still had things to do, damn it, and the God of Mischief wasn’t going to change that, ties to him would mean nothing. And that that would only happen if the god refused to admit it was a joke.

Thor put his hands on both sides of the contraption, and whispered a few words, too low for Tony to hear. Huh. He thought that Thor didn’t have any magic. Well. That was unimportant. He needed to know what his least favorite reindeer felt about this, and if he was going to force the issue. He needed to figure out to make the pain in his head stop, how to sleep without waking up a mere handful of hours later covered in sweat. Once Thor left the room, Tony returned his attention to the God of Mischief, the God of _Lies_.

He walked over to the god, standing over the sitting figure, “I don’t believe that ‘bondmate’ shit. Tell me what the _fuck_ you did to me, and you’re going to _fix_ it, or so help me.” Uncreative, the threat, but it was all he could come up with, due to the pounding in his skull.

Tony felt, rather than saw the flinch. “Thor was not lying. Despite what you want to believe, what I would wish to be true, we are irreversibly bonded, without either one of ours consent, and despite all of that, I am unwilling to die, simply because you, Stark, refuse to accept what _is_. No matter how much I would like to change what has happened, I cannot, and neither can you.” Throughout his speech Loki refused to look Tony in the eye.

“ _This is not fucking funny._ ” snarled Tony. “I won’t be tied to you, and I won’t have sex with you, you can damn well forget it.”

Loki’s head whipped up, and he glared at Tony. “Stark, as much as you might think I want this, I really, really don’t. The idea of continuing to have your hatred of me in my head is not good for me, and I do not like it, I do not want it. I have both of our migraines in my head and sometimes I think I might just burst with the amount of pain that this strained bond is causing me. But it will not let me die so easily. It wants me to have _you_ , for Hel knows what reason.” Loki snarled, and paused to take a breath.

Tony interrupted him. “What do you mean you _feel_ both of our migraines? And feeling how much I hate you? That’s not… that’s not possible.” 

Loki rushed to inform him, “Oh, I assure you, it is true. I feel every bit of hate you feel, I feel the never ending migraine you have had since we last saw one another, I feel your terror after waking up from a nightmare that I can only guess at, but I can safely assume that it was partially about me, I feel your exhaustion because you have not slept for days. It wears at me, Stark. It makes me physically ill. Even if these damnable chains did not suppress my magic I doubt I could muster the energy for a simple spell. I am dying, I am miserable. I will not force you, but know you will die an exhausting death, and it will be _your fault_. Realize this, Stark, and act accordingly. But while you decide, lessen this damn headache and touch me somewhere, my head, my hand, my foot for all I care.” He finished, looking at the inventor, thrusting his hands upwards, palms spread wide. He swallowed, “Anthony Stark, I never took you for a sadist, or a masochist. You have caused the both of us a large amount of pain. You will _not_ continue to do so.” Tired of waiting for Tony to do something and just stop staring wild-eyed at offending appendage, he grabbed one of the hands lying at Tony’s side and sighed in relief.

Immediately, Tony wanted to struggle, and he listened to his first instinct. Loki grasped his hands even harder.”Let. Me. Go.” growled Tony. 

“Even an idiotic mortal such as you could feel the relief this touch provides. Why do you continue to fight? Is it because of the fact that that oaf told you we would have to consummate the bond? We don’t have to consummate the bond for _years_ and even if we did have to consummate it, is it your dignity that you’re worried about protecting? Are you worried because you have only ever been attracted to the fairer sex? Is that it? I can turn myself into a woman if that is what you are bothered by.” Loki was babbling now, obviously desperate to make his pain end, regardless of the fact he would spend the rest of Tony’s life glued to his side.

“Shut up. Let me think.” Tony gritted out, as he stopped trying to pull his hand away. No matter how much he wanted to deny it, the touch did help the headache, damn it all. 

Tony made a chart in his head. On one hand, he despised Loki. The god had thrown him out of his own window, had killed hundreds of people, and wanted to subjugate the human race to what amounted to slavery.

On the other hand, the god was apparently the only one to be able to fix the pounding in his skull. And nothing other than sex could permanently remove the punishment from his head. And, if he was to be entirely honest with himself, the god was not unattractive. However, the idea of submitting to the god during sex made him nauseous. He hadn’t ever done that with a man, and to do it with someone who hated him, who wished him ill, who tried to kill him, was nerve wracking. 

As he thought about it, the longing in his chest started to disappear, becoming whole. The figurative, hole, at least. There was still a faint glow from the arc reactor. That, at least, he had control over. He knew how it worked, what powered it, how to fix it. This _thing_ in his head? With it he was flying blind. Tony didn’t like flying blind. He had Jarvis to prevent that. And Jarvis was useless here. Hell, Tony was useless here. He had to trust Loki and Thor to guide him through this. Tony was willing to trust Thor with his life. He trusted Loki about as far as he could throw an elephant without the suit. 

Tony could feel worry creeping up on him, but why was he worrying? Loki had said something about shared emotions, maybe it was that? Surely it was that. If he was worrying, he needed to find out what he was worrying about and soon. He didn’t want to start hyperventilating in front of the god still holding his hand. Maybe the worry would recede if he stopped holding his hand? It may take away the headache, but the emotional transference was not worth it. He started to disengage his hand from the god’s, who started to hold it tighter. Tony felt the panic rise in him, and struggled to pull his hand away.

“Let. Go.” He stated firmly. And just like that the hold loosened, and Tony was easily able to remove his hand. Almost immediately, the panic abated as well as the worry. So he was right, and at the moment, emotional sharing was heightened by touch on Tony’s end of the bond.

“Why did you start to panic?” Tony asked, ignoring the minor headache that he could feel coming on.

Loki looked at him like he hadn’t said it once before. “If you don’t accept it I will die and so will you. If you do accept it we will spend the rest of your short mortal life together. You spent at least ten minutes thinking it over when there really is only one choice.” 

Tony looked at him for a while, and stopped to think. He had no guarantee that Loki wouldn’t try to kill him to get out of this. And so he decided on a pair of stipulations that he thought would make the god say no, to get out of Tony’s life. He could deal with the headaches, and the alcohol he regularly consumed already shot his liver to hell, so no matter what he probably wouldn’t live past sixty, so what difference did the extra twenty years make. 

“I have two conditions, if we’re actually going to do this thing.” Loki nodded, encouraging him on. “One, I will _not_ be the receiving partner in any thing we do when it comes to the bedroom. I’ve never done it before, and I’d sure as hell not like to start with you.” 

“That is fine. I can change myself into someone of the fairer sex if it would make you more comfortable. Shape shifting is one of my magic’s specialties.” Loki agreed quickly, presumably wanting this over with immediately.

Tony started to feel nervous and sick. He chalked it up to second hand emotions, and continued with his second stipulation. “You bring up my second stipulation.” The sure expression on his face started to crumble, and quite frankly looked scared. Tony pointedly ignored it. “I want someone, preferably me, to be able to control your magic.”

Tony felt a spike a fear that reached from his stomach to his throat. _We’re not even touching._ he thought. _This isn’t supposed to happen if we’re not touching._

Loki stood up abruptly, and backed away, hands raised, breaking his train of thought. “No. No. _No._ You can make me argr if you want, but not that. Stark, I cannot do that. My magic is part of me. To do without it would be you attempting to do without a leg.” His eyes were wild, pleading.

Tony sighed. The headache he felt creeping on him earlier decided to showcase itself and he could feel the full force of it slamming his brain against his skull for all it was worth. “Calm down. Relax, _control your fucking emotions._ I’m not saying I want to take it away. I’m saying I want to limit it. Keep you from blowing up my humble city again. Keep you from killing people. You can still keep it. But I want to be given a modicum of control when it comes to what you do with it.” He thought his intentions were obvious. Not that he would mind if he _did_ control all the magic, but at the very least he wanted to say what Loki could and could not do with it. 

The fear that was crawling its way up Tony’s throat disappeared and Loki stopped trying to back away, to put distance between them.

He looked Tony in the eyes, and said in a quiet voice, “I agree to your stipulations.”

“Wonderful, Rudolph. Now, let’s go reassure your brother that we haven’t killed each other yet. Isn’t that important in a bond?” Tony quipped, forcing cheer into his voice. He turned around and left the room, leaving a bewildered look plastered on the face behind him.


	2. Chapter 2

When the doors slid shut behind him, Tony immediately caught sight of Thor, who hadn’t left the doorway in the half an hour that Loki and he had talked. He looked worried, unsure if Tony would accept the bond, which, apparently, couldn’t be changed. 

Noticing the worried look on the god of thunder’s face, he rushed to reassure him, “We talked. And we reached an understanding. I’ve agreed to bond with him as long as his magic is limited, and I get a small say in how he can use it.” _And what positions we’ll take during sex._ he thought drily. But he didn’t think that it would be wise to say the second stipulation, who knew how Thor would react to Tony defiling his little brother. 

Best not to find out. 

Thor’s face split into a grin, like his favorite couple just got married in a fictional TV show. 

“That is wonderful, Man of Iron!” Thor beamed. 

_Oh, God. He’s actually happy that I’m willing to bond with his nutty younger brother._ Tony was shocked. Even though Loki had tried to kill his brother numerous times, he was still pleased that the bag of cats found what the ‘frost giants’ would term happiness. 

What a fucked up family. “Uhm. Yeah. I was gonna ask, is it possible that I could control how Loki would be able to use his magic? Like no killing or hurting people, no causing mischief around me? I don’t want to stop him from using it, it seems kind of important to him.” Tony asked.

“It should be of no consequence. I am certain our father will be able to conjure something with those requirements.” Thor assured. 

Tony nodded, “All right. Are you going to take him back to Asgard or is he taking advantage of SHIELD’s hospitality?” 

“No, Man of Iron. My brother and I have just arrived from Asgard. I am afraid I must ask you for lodgings for him. I will return to Asgard and see what I can do about getting Loki’s magic restricted. Until then he can wear the manacles around his wrists which dampen all of his magic. Will you allow him to stay here?” Thor asked.

“Uhm. Sure. I don’t see why not.” Tony replied. There were always guest rooms on the other floors, and he was pretty sure Jarvis could keep a powerless god of mischief locked in. Jarvis could probably keep the Hulk reasonably subdued, although Tony would probably have better luck. The Other Guy seemed to like him.

“That is wonderful! I will notify my father to your request, and return as soon as possible. Farewell, Man of Iron.” Thor’s smile was going to _kill_ Tony, he was sure of it. He didn’t want the backing of his Avenger friend. He wanted Thor to be against this, reluctant as Tony was. 

“Yeah. Uhm. ‘Farewell, Point Blank.’” He replied, slightly mocking the formal goodbye Thor favored. The god continued to beam at him until he turned away and went to the roof.

“Mr. Odinson has left the premises, sir.” Jarvis crackled overhead. 

_Why did I let Loki stay here? That was a bad idea. A_ very _bad idea._ Tony thought, cursing himself. He wasn’t cut out for guard duty, nor this whole ‘soul mates’ thing. Pepper, who knew exactly what she was getting into when she started a relationship with him, left. She left because he was irresponsible, because he didn’t know how to handle monogamy. He wouldn’t _cheat_ on her, but he didn’t know what emotional things she required of him. How she wanted to sleep in the same bed. But if he only slept on the couch in the lab that was difficult. How she wanted to go on dates, to spend quality time together, but his idea of quality time generally consisted of making things in the lab. It didn’t work.

And she ended it. It wasn’t as though he wasn’t fond of her. He loved her as much as he was able. But it wasn’t enough. His actions weren’t enough. And he couldn’t change that without going insane. He couldn’t sleep with her, and then wake up to nightmares of falling. He couldn’t put all of that on Pepper. 

They were still friends, thank God. He created the technical stuff that went into Stark Industries, and she ran the company, saving him from board meetings. But he still had to visit the charity parties, because it was Stark, not Potts, who was in the company name. It was Tony, not Pepper, that the press constantly followed, desperate to find new information on the company, about his life.

Thinking about his failed relationships weren’t helping with the Loki problem. Well. First thing first. The god needed a place to stay, and preferably that place would have maximum security. Most of the tower had high security. Tony wasn’t going to screw around with his life, or the life of his guests. 

“Jarvis, do we have a high security room within two floors of my rooms?” he asked, deciding that keeping the supposed powerless god closer might lessen the headache that returned, but not as killer as it was before. Maybe it would help. Maybe Loki was stringing him and Thor along to get back on Earth. He wasn’t sure and that bothered him.

“There are exactly 3 rooms, one on each floor including your own. Which would you prefer I get ready?” Jarvis readily replied, indifferent to the inner turmoil that was Tony’s head. That was good. Tony needed this piece of calm to always be there. 

“The one on my floor, I guess. I don’t want to walk too far to go and see him.” Tony decided. Maybe the god would kill Tony in his sleep. That would put an end to the headache, at the very least. But Jarvis would prevent that. Tony would have the bracelets next to him as he slept, if he slept. 

“Very well, sir.” The AI’s voice chimed.

Christ. He needed to go and talk to Loki, to tell him what happened, that he was basically going to be locked in a very nice cell with access to one visitor until his brother returned with the prognosis. 

When said like that it didn’t seem very pleasant, but it was better than what he received from SHEILD. It would have to do.

Making his way towards the conference room that they left Loki in, he went over what he knew for a fact. He had a killer headache since Loki had been on Asgard. The only time that this headache had abated was when he touched Loki’s hand. He knew that he trusted Thor, at least on the battlefield. He didn’t think that Thor would lie to him, but it was the God of Lies that they were dealing with. From the way he spoke of Thor, Loki wouldn’t regret using him. He definitely wouldn’t regret using Tony. 

Realizing that he was standing outside the door, staring at it, stopped his train of thought. He would have to enter at some point, he knew this, but he could push this off as he thought about it some more. 

“Jarvis, what is our favorite supervillian doing, exactly?” He asked, wanting to be prepared for whatever he encountered in there.

“Mr. Odinson appears to be doing nothing, sir.”

Nothing? Tony had assumed that he would be pacing, plotting, hell, wouldn’t even be in there, magic restricting chains non-withstanding. But he was. He was still in there, doing nothing.

 _I need to see this for myself._ he thought, because while in SHIELD custody he paced, he fidgeted, he plotted, and made absolutely no attempt to hide it. So why would he try and change it now? Unless he wasn’t plotting. But there was no way this wasn’t an elaborate ruse, designed to get Loki free of prison, off the hook for destroying half of New York City, for trying to subjugate the earth. Loki wasn’t his ‘soulmate’ in any form of the word. They tried to kill one another the first time they met. He threw Tony out of Tony’s own window. Loki tried to kill him at least twice. No ‘bond’ would change the fact he would still attempt to kill him every chance he got.

Damn. _Damn._ Tony didn’t want to have to house the god. He didn’t want to be within a hundred miles of the god. He didn’t want to wake up from a nightmare, only to find the star in his house. ‘Safe as houses’ his ass.

“Jarvis, is the room ready?”

“Yes, sir.” Well, there was something he could do. He could lock the god in the room and leave him there, ignoring the fact that he was here.

But Tony knew that if he was locked in a room for days like that he would go nuts. He would wreak havoc on anything and everything. In Afghanistan he had Yinsen. Loki was the God of _Chaos_. He would wreck the room after only a few days. It probably wouldn’t even take a few days, hours at the most. And Tony liked his tower the way it was, thank you.

 _There’s always the library. Jarvis could explain to him how it was organized._ he brainstormed. Deciding that his library should be open, _he didn’t even use it anyway, having spent all his time down in the lab,_ and Jarvis would explain to him what everything on Earth was, because Tony didn’t want to talk to Loki any more than necessary.

Steeling his resolve, he opened the meeting room door, it silently sliding out of the way. The god looked like he hadn’t moved since Tony left him, which was over an hour ago. His hunched over figure stiffened almost imperceptibly when he entered the room, head slowly raising, eyes boring into Tony’s. 

“Did Thor leave?” he asked, setting his cuffed hands on the table in front of him.

“Yup.” Replied Tony cheerfully, “It’s just you and me now, buddy. I had Jarvis prepare a room for you, and if you pinky promise not to damage any of the books, you can hang out and read in the library.” Did they even have pinky promises on Asgard? Tony doubted it.

Loki looked confused. “Does a ‘pinky promise’ entail that you take my littlest finger as payment?”

Right, so gods did not have pinky promises.

“Oh, no. A pinky promise means that you and someone else crook your pinky finger,” Tony demonstrated, and Loki mimicked the motion, awaiting further instruction, “and then the both of you wrap your fingers around one another’s and promise something. You can’t break it, it is sacred.”

Okay so maybe Tony stretched how important a pinky promise was, but he was allowed to have a little fun, especially if he was supposed to be bonded for life to someone he has nightmares about, who wasn’t even from this planet.

Loki nodded, holding out his crooked pinky, a solemn adorning his face. “I pinky promise that I shall not harm any of your books.” 

Tony curved his finger, twisting it with Loki’s, “Wonderful. Now, get up, Rudolph. I’m going to show you your room, and then the library, which Jarvis will explain to you how it works while I’m in my lab. You’re going to be confined to the one floor, and if you get hungry tell Jarvis and we’ll order food or something, I don’t think we have any stocked here, I haven’t really been in the mood to eat recently.” He babbled, realizing once he said it that he actually hadn’t been eating much recently and he probably lost a few pounds of muscle.

 _Damn. I hate gaining muscle. All that time working out when I could be in the lab._ he mentally groaned, dreading that once Fury said he was fit for duty that that’s what he would be doing. 

Loki stood, and Tony immediately stepped back, moving before he could even think, “My apologies, I did not intend to startle you.” He said quickly.

“It’s fine, no big deal, especially if we have to be together for the rest of my life, I’ll get over it. I’m just… I haven’t been sleeping lately. Makes me skittish.” _No. No, shut up, Tony, you’re not supposed to give him information to use against you shut_ up _for the love of God, you’re a genius, not an idiot giving away all of your secrets._

Loki looked at him with pity, and Tony immediately regretted saying a single thing. “It’s whatever. Follow me, if you want to see your room.” He said, turning around, exiting the room, the god five feet behind him. They took the stairs, Tony didn’t think that he could handle being in such a small space with Loki, their current peace and, dare he say it, good will, notwithstanding. 

Opening the door to Loki’s room, he made sure everything was in working order. It was, no one had used it since Pepper left. The bed was undisturbed, nothing was on the floor. Good. He hated treating guests, if that was what Loki even was, to a room that was less than what he would want if the situation were reversed.

“Did you bring anything?” Tony was going to show him the library, then bail. Because being in such small spaces with someone who threw him out a window, was not what he had planned for the day.

“No. I was not prepared to spend more than a day here.” A small smile graced his face, almost apologetic, except Loki didn’t _do_ apologetic. He wasn’t sorry for attacking the Earth, for throwing Tony out of the window.

Tony clapped his hands together, and motioned for Loki to follow him. “I realize that you’re probably used to a more grandiose library, but this is all my humble abode has to offer.” Tony said as they walked down the hall to the library. “I don’t spend much time in here, but whenever Bruce stays here he spends whatever time he’s not down in the lab reading. He likes it.” Pepper liked it too, but he didn’t think it was appropriate to mention that.

The library didn’t even have a door, just an open doorway. The room was lined with shelves, all of the books the same distance from the wall. Even off of the walls, every few feet there was another shelf, crammed with books. A narrow pathway was between each shelf, and in the corner a few chairs took up residence, a lamp in the middle of them.

Tony turned to see how Loki was reacting to it, and the only way he could think of describing it was ‘incredulous.’

“Stark, I believe you misunderstand what ‘humble’ means.” he said, stepping into the library, surveying the contents. 

Bruce had reorganized the library, and told Jarvis how it was structured. He told Tony once, too, but he had hardly been paying attention because the pounding in his skull made it hard to even think, let alone listen and absorb information. 

“And you misunderstand what sarcasm is.” He quipped, “Jarvis will explain to you how everything is organized. There’s a lot of sciencey stuff in there, help yourself. Just remember you pinky promised not to damage anything.” He wanted to get out of here and maybe tinker with a suit, maybe take a few ibuprofen for the headache, maybe just sit in a dark room and think about how the situation, think up a few ways to maybe get Loki to like him. 

Well, the ibuprofen was a given. And he wasn’t really feeling up to tinkering with his suit. Maybe he’d pass out eventually, what had it been, forty-eight hours? He could probably gain three hours of sleep, before the nightmares started. Making his way to his room, and the medicine cabinet contained within, he poured four pills into his hand, filled a small glass with water, and swallowed them like the expert he was. 

“Jarvis, once I reach the bed, make my room as dark as you can. Wake me if I start to scream.” He ordered certain that after a few hours a nightmare would appear and he would be making noises. After he climbed onto the bed, there was total darkness, and he closed his eyes, feeling the last dregs of caffeine in his coffee disappear, and yes, he was positive he could gain a few hours of sleep. 

Slowly, he faded from consciousness.

~*~

When he awoke, he was blissfully headache free. And he felt incredibly warm. He burrowed into his cushion.

“Stark, are you awake?” a horribly familiar voice said softly, and Tony was jerked from his reverie. 

“Jarvis, turn up the lights a little bit. And how long have I been asleep?” he asked, ignoring the other being in his bed. That could wait. It would have to wait. 

Once the lights increased enough to see his bedmate, a tired, rumpled looking Loki, he realized that his incredibly warm cushion was the god’s lap. He moved his head off of it and onto a pillow as Jarvis answered, “You have been asleep for approximately ten hours, sir.”

“I’m assuming that I only slept that much was because you were here?” he addressed Loki, his body not fully recovered despite the ten solid hours of sleep he just had. After going months sleeping the bare minimum, Tony thought he could sleep twenty more hours if he was given the chance. 

“I was in the library where you left me, and about three hours after you left I could feel that you were upset, so I came to see if you were okay. The moment I touched you to wake up, you stopped making noises, and I stopped feeling your distress. I was about to leave and you started vocalizing your distress again, so I decided to stay.” He explained, uncertain for some unknown reason. “I hope I have not violated you in any way, it was not my intention.”

“No. No, it’s fine, I guess.” It wasn’t fine. He had been here while Tony _slept_ and who knows what kind of damage he could have inflicted on him if he felt like it. “Did you at least get any sleep yourself?”

“I slept for about four hours myself.”

Damn. Damn it. Tony could only sleep uninterrupted by nightmares if Loki slept with him. Which made giving the god his own room somewhat obsolete, if he would just be called into Tony’s every time he had a nightmare.

“Christ. Okay.” Tony sat up, resting his weight on his elbows. “Have you been sleeping well? Before this, I mean.” If Loki wasn’t sleeping well, it would be easier to convince him to sleep here, and not in his own bed. Before, Tony didn’t sleep much, and now he felt like a kid, missing naptime once it was gone. 

“I have not slept much more than you, truth be told.” The God of Lies was speaking about the truth. Tony smiled just a little.

“Then would you mind staying here? I’ve been a bit out of it, and getting a few hours or ten more won’t hurt me.” And even now, right after waking up, he could feel his body telling him to go back to sleep, now that it was _safe_. 

_You need to redefine what, exactly, safe is._ Tony thought to himself, because Loki wasn’t safe. Under no circumstances was Loki ‘safe,’ supposed bond-thingy or whatever Thor called it not mattering at all.

“Of course I can stay.” He replied smoothly, and then, despite how much he tried to hide it, Tony could _feel_ Loki suppressing a yawn.

His mind made up, he ordered, “You’re tired too. Jarvis, turn off the lights, and only wake me up if it is super important, otherwise, let me catch up on sleep.”

As the lights dimmed his head fell back onto the pillow, and his ears caught the soft breathing of his bedmate.

“If you’re a ‘frost giant’ or whatever, shouldn’t your bondmate be one too?” Tony heard himself asking, not registering the words before the left his mouth. The dark hid his face, hiding his face made him feel better, no matter that Loki could feel his emotions.

“I am unfamiliar with cases such as ours, in which one of the pair is not a Jӧtun also. However, I am not well versed in the intricacies of Jӧtunheim, as many of my expeditions there have ended poorly. They were not particularly inclined to help identify the cause of my,” here he paused, searching for a kinder word than “problem,” “affliction. Through good fortune, they take bonding very seriously, and will help anyone who is going through it. Many remember the pain they themselves felt, and did not like who their bondmate was. Bondings are, for lack of a better word, sacred. They would not let one rot. Even if it belonged to the monster that tried to annihilate their entire race.” Loki finished with a small sigh.

“What the hell do you mean ‘tried to annihilate their entire race’? What the fuck did you _do_?” his voice rose. Right, he was sleeping with the person who tried to rule the earth, and apparently commit genocide. Right. And then he was expected to spend the last twenty years of his life with that same person, and eventually have sex with him, and while Tony normally wouldn’t turn down sex, especially with an attractive person, he knew when he saw crazy, and to leave crazy the fuck alone. Crazy was not being allowed to be left alone and this irked Tony. 

Loki’s sight this time was more audible, “Frost Giants and the Ӕsir are mortal enemies. When Thor was banished to Midguard, I found out my true identity, a Frost Giant. Odin had taken me from Jӧtunheim as a babe, and intended to use me to achieve peace between the two realms. I killed their king, and it was only after I discovered that he was my father. Once I found out what I was, a thing I had been raised to hate, I thought I could gain the All Father’s favor by destroying them. I was wrong. I ended up falling off the Bifrost and into the Void. You have been in the Void, the nothingness, it wears at you. I thought I deserved a throne, it being my birthright in not one, but two realms. You were a simple enough realm to conquer.”

“But you lost.” Anger shot through Tony, _Yes, you bastard, you_ lost _because it was not your right to even think about conquering another planet._

“Yes, I lost, or was I not that obvious? I am here in chains, Stark. I left and returned to your realm chained and muzzled like a dog.” He snarled, and they weren’t even touching but Tony could feel his anger and it was adding to Tony’s and if he didn’t try and diffuse the situation they wouldn’t ever get to sleep and now he just regretted bringing up the whole thing, but how was he supposed to know that Loki really was that fucked up it wasn’t his fault and why was he starting to hyperventilate that wasn’t supposed to happen he was Tony Stark and calm washed through him, halting the train of thoughts that careened through his head. His breathing slowed, and he scooted towards the edge of the bed, to get as far away as he possibly could because despite everything he did Tony didn’t actually have a death wish.

“I am not… I am not going to harm you.” Loki said, voice heavy. “You would be well within your rights to have me killed if I harmed you, and no one will take my side in any argument pertaining to that. The Frost Giants would watch me burn. Your realm would imprison me without a second thought. Even _Thor_ would not defend me.” He spit out.

“To be fair, you tried to ruin every single one of them.” Tony pointed out, knowing how much this would annoy the god, and just not caring.

“Go to sleep, Stark. If what you have said is true, you haven’t slept well since I was carted off to Asgard.”Loki murmured, all anger forgotten and wasn’t that _weird_ he thought, drifting back to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Like I said I'm going to try and update kinda regularly, and by that I was thinking once every 2 weeks or so. 
> 
> However, I'm going out of the country and my internet will be sporadic at best so in 3 weeks I will (hopefully) be updating on a regular basis. 
> 
> If you see any major typos or grammar mistakes, please let me know. 
> 
> And if you think either one of them is becoming too out of characte, let me know, and I'll see what I can do to make them more in character.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This will for certain the last chapter I update before the 20th or so of June.
> 
> This chapter is shorter than the other two, but I wanted to post something before I left on my trip!
> 
> This is un-beta'd so please let me know of you see any major grammar or spelling mistakes!
> 
> Enjoy!

The next time he awoke, he could feel the heartbeat of the god under his chest, thumping steadily. He knew Loki was still asleep, for his breaths remained even and he didn’t greet Tony like he had the last time. Loki’s arms wrapped around his smaller frame, the handcuffs creating a loop, that, while not suffocating, was tight enough that Loki would probably need to be awake to get him out of it. And Tony was appreciating the not angry, content feelings he was receiving. 

So he laid there, and enjoyed it as much as he could, soaking the warmth that he knew would disappear once the god woke up. As he lay there, he could feel the body next to him stiffening, the warmth slowly retreating. 

Deciding that his silence could be broken, he directed a question towards his favorite AI, “Jarvis, how long were we asleep that time?” He felt better; he felt rested enough to be a productive human being in his lab. Maybe even enough to risk bothering the bag of crazy lying next to him. 

“Sir, you have been asleep for approximately nine hours, and Mr. Odinson has been asleep for approximately seven hours. It is 9:36 AM.” The inflectionless voice replied. Jarvis may have been programmed to be inflectionless, but Tony thought it sounded disappointed.

“If I was Odin’s son, I would not be here.” Loki muttered, probably not intending for Tony to hear.

“Where would you be, if you were Odin’s son?” Tony asked.

“On Asgard. Rotting away in a cell or maybe none of this would have even happened. I… lost it, when I found out my heritage.” He answered.

“Do you want Jarvis to call you something different? Just tell him to, he knows what he’s doing. Also, can I stop being an overgrown teddy bear? I have to pee.” 

Almost immediately, the hold loosened, and he felt the arms stretch out over his head, releasing his body. Hopping up, feeling more energized than he had in months, he felt like skipping all the way to the bathroom, and when he came back, he noticed Loki hadn’t moved, looking up at the ceiling, looking like he was deep in thought.

“Hey, Rudolph, you going to stop looking so mopey? There are so many things to do! And these things don’t even include taking over the world!” Tony laughed, realizing he sounded like a stupid child, but for the first time in months he could think and act, hell, turn on the light without a pounding migraine threatening to make his skull explode. 

Loki stiffened, almost imperceptibly. “I am pleased that you feel well enough to continue your daily routine.” He sat up, “Do you have any plans for me today?”

“I was going to spend time in my lab, and finish some projects I was working on before you showed up the first time. Did you get to look through the library?” Tony wouldn’t let Loki’s downtrodden attitude affect him, because he was _happy_. 

“I searched through approximately half of your library’s collections. It was very expansive.” He said neutrally, removing himself from the bed.

Tony grinned. “Yeah. I know. Find anything you liked?” He and Pepper and now Bruce had put a lot of effort into that library, and he was only too willing to receive complements over it. 

“I found a few things that caught my interest.” He replied formally.

Tony looked at him quizzically, “You sound like Mr. Spock. Whatever. Hey, do you want to change your clothes, or do you think big brother will be back soon enough that you won’t need to?” He was going to start to smell if he didn’t change clothes soon, who knew how long he’d been wearing the outfit already. 

“Thor is not my brother.” Loki said. “And my mag—“ he stopped, and restarted, “The Allfather will be able to grant your request for magic dampeners quickly. I would be able to do it in less than three days, and he and Frigga are more gifted sorcerers than I, at least together. The oaf should be back by the end of the day, your time.” Loki frowned. “I hope he doesn’t forget the key to these wretched things. They’re heavy.” 

“Has he forgotten them before?” Tony inquired.

“I thought I was going to have to kill him.” Replied Loki drily. Tony laughed.

“Wonderful! I’m going to go change into something that has probably had enough grease on it at one point to fry potatoes, and if you wouldn’t mind getting out…” Tony trailed off, edging over toward his closet. “If you’re hungry, I think I might have something in the kitchen. I’ll be out in just a second. Shoo.” He waved his arms at Loki’s retreating form. When he heard the door click, he walked over to his closet, quickly finding a t-shirt that had to be from back when he was in college. Shucking his sleep wear, he found a pair of loose jeans and switched into his lab clothes.

Noticing he was hungry, once he changed he walked towards the kitchen, in the mood to eat something for the first time in months, now that his headache was gone. Loki was already in there, looking around confused, apparently, they didn’t have cabinets in Asgard. Or maybe his mobility was just that limited with those cuffs on. 

“You confused, Rudolph?” he asked.

Loki turned towards him, and gestured to the wall fixtures, “Stark, you have nothing to eat. All you have in your storage areas are boxes.”

Holding back a laugh, Tony opened the cabinet and surveyed what they had. He wasn’t feeling up to putting too much time into the meal, because now that his head didn’t ache he could achieve real science, make modifications to the suit, create safer energy sources, all without wanting to rip open his head to stop the constant pounding.

A few boxes of cereal looked promising, and if he didn’t have milk, which he _should_ if Jarvis was doing his job, he could still eat it. 

Grabbing a box of sweetened cheerios, he turned around and raised the box triumphantly. “This, Reindeer Games, is food.” He announced, placing it on the counter, and moving towards the fridge.

Opening the fridge, Tony had to look around behind bottle that were both nearly full and almost empty, hardly having a mouthful left. But he _did_ have milk, bless JARVIS, best thing Tony ever did, programming him, and it's expiration date was in the future. Or maybe his sense of time was screwed, he really hadn't been paying attention when all he wanted to do was cut a hole in his head and let the pain out. He twisted the cap and sniffed the contents.

It was usable. Whichever meant that Loki's first meal in his tower would be sweetened Cheerios and milk. It's what Tony felt like eating most days, simple, easy, and it didn't really taste bad, no matter how many days in a row he ate it. Besides, there was always take out from that Chinese place a few blocks from here. 

"Okay, in the cabinet to your left there's bowls. Grab two." Tony ordered, planning to get the utensils himself. He set the milk next to the Cheerios and turned around, but not before catching a glimpse of what had to be indignation, rummaging through a drawer that last time he checked had spoons. Finding two matching ones, he closed the drawer and held them up like a prize.

Any look that Loki may have had before at being told what to do was gone, replaced with a mask of neutrality. He had placed two bowls onto the counter, apparently just as graceful as always despite the fetters around his wrists. 

"What you are about to enjoy is one of the best breakfast things Americans have ever done, but not quite as good as pancakes." Tony couldn't make pancakes, his cooking expertise was limited to microwaving premade meals and reheating left overs. Bruce could make mean pancakes though. He even let Tony dye them green once. "It's really simple. Just pout these things into your bowl and add a little milk. You eat it with a spoon, obviously." Tony demonstrated, pushing the finished mixture in front of his guest. 

Loki listened, apparently contemplating whether or not he was actually going to eat it. He should. Raising his right hand, left trailing behind, he dipped his spoon and shoveled a large mouthful of Cheerios into his mouth; he had no difficulty chewing despite the fact that the spoonful should have overwhelmed his mouth. 

Once Loki swallowed, Tony asked, "So do you like them?" 

Loki nodded, "They're very sweet."

"Great. If all else fails you can eat these things if you don't like what I order in." Tony could understand, he was pretty sure that he once spent summer as a kid just eating Cheerios of some sort and eggs. 

They ate the rest of their breakfast in silence. 

~*~

They split up after breakfast, Tony heading down a few floor to his labs, where could finally finish those upgrades to the suit that he had been in too much pain to do before. Loki, he was pretty sure, was in the library, exploring the half that he had not yet looked over the previous afternoon. While he waited for his programs to load and reboot he thought about what he wanted to do with Loki's magic. 

Tony was pretty sure that he could get his suit to react faster if Loki ever lost it and decided to defenestrate him again, but if his words last night meant anything, there wouldn't be a repeat.

But Loki was the God of _Lies_. He would try and trick Tony into letting his guard down and then attacking him when he least expected it, the bastard. 

As he finished the last few lines of code that should double his suit's response time, Tony felt a wave of revulsion course through him, causing nausea to fill his abdomen. 

_Jesus Christ, what the heck has happened now?_ he thought to himself as he stood up from his stool none too gently. 

"Jarvis, what is our current guest doing?" Tony needed to know what he was walking into, if he was going to have to test his new rescue coding on himself. Fuck, he hoped not. 

"Mr. Loki," So he did get Jarvis to call him something different, "appears to be doing nothing, sir. He is sitting in the library and has been on the same page of his book for eight minutes and forty-three seconds, and was previously reading at the rate of four pages per minute."

So he was thinking. Great. "What book was he reading?" Maybe something sparked a dangerous train of thought in his head ? That would be Tony's luck: he finally gets a "soul mate" and not only have they tried to kill him before, but they share the feelings of revulsion that they have about it.

"He was reading _Engineering For Dummies_ , sir." The ever calm voice replied.

Tony helped to _write_ that book. He knew there was nothing in there that would actively promote thinking bad things.

As he finished this thought he walked into the elevator, telling Jarvis to take him to his personal level, because the residual revulsion was making it hard to concentrate.

The closer he got to where Loki was, the sick feeling increased. Tony felt like a pre-pubescent kid coming home with an F on his report card. God this emotion thing _sucked_.

Eventually he made it to the library door, and entered after asking Jarvis if Loki was still looking at the same page, only to be informed that the timer had clicked up a few minutes.

"Stark." Loki said flatly, looking up through his lashes with emotionless eyes.

"You know, I expected a warmer welcome, considering that we're meant to be together for the rest of my life." But that could always be why he felt the revulsion. Because they were meant to be together for the rest of _Tony's_ life, not Loki's, which had to be millennia longer. "What's gotten into you, Rudolph? We were having a really good morning and then I start feeling sick. Care to explain?" 

What once had been emotionless eyes soon became full of disgust, with himself or Tony, he wasn't sure. "I was becoming aware of what my situation in your realm was."

"I'm pretty sure it wouldn't take 8 minutes to determine that Earth doesn't really like you. We discussed this last night."

Loki didn't respond, but slowly his stomach stopped making him want to vomit.

"Thanks!" Back to the lab, that was his game plan as he turned around, only to be stopped by the gurgling of a stomach that wasn't his. When he looked back at Loki, he would have sworn that the tips of his ears burned red. "You hungry? I was thinking that we could order a few pizzas while we wait for your brother to arrive." He knew an awesome pizza place a few minutes away from here that would deliver. 

"I don't have a brother." Loki spit, venom lacing every word.

"Sure you don't, you just have a man who loves you like family and calls you 'brother.'" Honestly, Loki needed to stop being so horrible to Thor, the guy was trying his best. "So, do you want the beauty that is pizza or no? Because if you don't care that's what we are having. And I'll order a separate pizza for Thor, I'm sure he'll be wanting a snack whenever we get those things," he waved at Loki's shackles, "off. C'mon, we have things to discuss before he gets here. Jarvis, order me one large half cheese half meat lovers, and two large supremes. From that place down the street. Big Joe's? Something like that. You know the one."

Wariness in his eyes, Loki closed his book and placed it back where he found it on the shelf.

Tony walked over to the kitchen where they had shared their breakfast that morning and sat down. The black haired god followed suit, setting his bound hands on the counter, reminding Tony why he brought him here in the first place. 

 

"You and I need to talk, Loki." Tony used real names when he needed to remind himself to be serious, that what he was doing wasn't a joke. He never used them during board meetings. "I know Thor is coming back with magic suppressing chains that will obey me and will control how much magic I want you to use." Tony explained. A pool of unease found its way into his stomach. "I realize you don't want me to control it, I really do, but I also don't trust you not to 'accidentally' kill someone with your magic. So I was thinking that you could shape shift, teleport, practice, whatever as long as you tell me, honestly, what the fuck you're about to do. I also want to forbid you from using your magic to attack someone unless they attack you first, and I don't mean a stupid little name. Like they have to be trying to kill you. You can fight without your magic, right?"

 

"Of course I can fight!" Loki said indignantly.

 

"Just making sure. And I want to forbid you using any sort of magic that can cause harm to civilians. Does this sound okay to you?" Tony asked, he wanted to keep himself and New York safe, not cripple the god. 

 

Loki seemed to deliberate it for a moment or two, and nodded. "Except I want to be able to have shields up at all time, both around you and myself. The shields will attack anyone who tries to harm either one of us, and as such will be prohibited by your desire that I not harm anyone."

 

Seeing no reason to refuse, Tony consented, clapping his hands. "Great, now that we have that settled, we can go see if the pizza has showed up yet. I'm starving, and I know you are too. Jarvis, what's the ETA on our pizza?"

 

"You're food should arrive within the next five minutes, sir, if they do not stray from their usual delivery speed." 

 

"Awesome. Hey, Reindeer Games, any idea of when your brother is going to be here?" Tony turned his attention onto Loki, silently daring him to challenge Tony calling Thor his brother. 

 

Loki sighed. "The oaf should arrive within the next few hours. Do not fret, for I assure you these chains do their duty to keep be bound quite well."

 

"Yeah, they do. But you also look miserable wearing them. And it's not okay to wake up being strangled by your arms and their connecting chain. Besides, I have these sensors that I use to measure the arc reactor's radioactivity and I was wondering of I could modify it to let me pick up your magic." Tony said, excited for the chance to be able to study it.

"Sir, your pizza has arrived." Chimed a voice from overhead. 

"Great, Jarvis, send the boy up. Hey, where did I put my wallet? Is it in my room? Also, you, hide. I don't want New York to know that the man who tried to subjugate them is now living with yours truly." The wallet had to be in his room somewhere. 

Loki looked offended, but apparently saw the merit in not showing his face too soon, and moved into the bathroom. 

"Sir, the order has already been paid for. I took the liberty when I ordered." Jarvis informed him. 

Tony had never been prouder of his invention, always thinking ahead and planning when Tony couldn't bother. "Yeah, but I kinda need to tip him. So where's my wallet?"

"It is on the beside table on your side of the bed." Replied his AI. 

 

"You're the best thing that has ever happened to me, Jarvis." Tony said brightly, having zero difficulty finding his wallet, it was exactly where Jarvis said it was. He opened it and grabbed a twenty. 

 

"I am aware, sir." Replied Jarvis. 

 

The elevator doors pinged open and Tony's regular delivery boy was carrying three huge pizzas, and _oh god that smell was heaven_. 

 

"Hey, kiddo. Jarvis said he already paid for the pizzas. Can you set them on the counter? I'm supposed to have company tonight. Here's your tip. I'll probably see you next week sometime! Have a nice day." Tony rambled as he ushered the boy around, finally putting him back onto the elevator. Once the doors closed, Loki emerged, eyes curious as he smelled the delicacy that was Big Joe's pizza. Both made their way to the kitchen to fill their stomachs. 

 

"I wasn't sure what you would like to eat so I just got one with everything on it, and one half cheese and one half meat. Help yourself. Leave one of the ones with everything on it for Thor." He said, opening the cupboards for plates. He pulled out two matching ones with blue vines and pink flowers. Pepper had liked them. 

 

"What do you want to drink? Beer? Water? I think I might have Coke here." He asked, deciding that he would have a beer. 

 

"I'll have a beer, thank you." Loki replied as he concentrated on prying open the pizza boxes. 

 

"If you want another one, don't smash the bottle on the floor. Ask nicely. Works wonders." If there was one thing Tony didn't want to do, it was clean up glass. And he didn't think Loki would be able to do it with his wrists bound as they were. 

 

Loki was about to respond, probably to say something nasty about his brother, only to be interrupted by a thud on the roof, followed by Jarvis informing them that Thor was here.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We switch POV about halfway through, and the italics are a memory. 
> 
> And hey, I posted this before the 20th!

Tony was glad that he wouldn't have to feed Thor cold pizza. 

"Jarvis, tell Thor to get in the elevator, and send him to my floor." He ordered, ignoring the way Loki stiffened. 

"As you wish, sir." 

Within a minute Thor was emerging from the elevator, carrying Mjolnir in one hand, "Greetings, Man of Iron." It wasn't quite a boom, but by no means was it quiet. 

"Heya, Blondie. How you been?" Tony shot back, because maybe if he spoke quieter than Thor, he would get the hint. 

"I fare well. I brought back the items that you requested of us." Thor replied, formal as ever. He didn't get the hint. 

"Awesome, thanks! You hungry? I got pizzas for the three of us, and yours has everything on it," Tony babbled. He knew that he didn't want the handcuffs on Loki, but he didn't particularly want all the responsibility he would gain the moment Loki had switched to the new ones. Not yet, anyway.

Thor should be hungry. He was always hungry. Or at least that's what Jane had told him. She knew, she met him first. 

"My thanks, Anthony." said Thor, and _that_ was definitely a boom. Tony managed to suppress a wince, but if the way Loki chuckled he didn't do a very good job of it. 

Well, no more subtlety. "Hey, Point Break, do you think you could turn down the volume a little? I'm worried my ears might explode." So Tony listened to music way too loud in his lab, that was _different_. For one thing, Jarvis had it set so that it wouldn't actually blow his eardrums to smithereens. For another, it wasn't actually that loud, the sound system was just amazing quality that made it seem loud.

"Of course!" Thor responded, voice now just slightly above what would usually be an acceptable indoor voice. He sat next to Loki at the table, prompting his adopted brother so scoot away from him. 

"Thanks, buddy." Tony grabbed Thor's pizza and brought it over to him, flipping the kid and placing it underneath the rest of the box. Thor picked up a slice and took a large bite, chewing thoroughly, commenting on the rate before Tony continued. "So, how's are things back in Asgard? I didn't get to ask you yesterday. Everything all peaceful and well?"

Inter-realm peace was good, it meant that nothing would be making its way to Earth with the intention if ruling it, unlike other beings he could mentions. 

"Everything is peaceful, even Asgard and Jotunheim. Their new king, I believe, will be more willing to discuss peace than Laufey ever was. I think it was the pacification of you, Loki, that has spurned this new desire for peace. Apparently, many Jötuns were unhappy with the way Laufey ruled, and are looking forward to the rule of Helblindi." Thor informed them, joy infusing his tone.

"I'm glad that my banishment pleases my brother." Loki said bitterly. 

Well wasn't that new, Loki had more than Thor as his siblings. 

"Wait, so the entirety of yotun-wherever is okay with Laufey's son taking over after Rudolph, who was also Laufey's son, here killed him?" 

Thor nodded. Tony turned to Loki, "Did you know he was your dad? I mean, I hated Howard but I don't think I could ever have killed him." Yeah, Tony hated being second best to a a perfect blonde kid that he had never even met, but he couldn't have killed Howard. But maybe this was different, maybe the fact he didn't know his father would have made it easier. 

Loki shook his head, "At the time I didn't know. All I knew was that I was Jötun." and even if Tony and Loki didn't share feelings it would be pretty hard to not hear the disgust in that voice. 

Tony glanced at the pizza boxes and noticed that all of Thor's pizza was eaten (when the hell did he manage that), and that both Loki and Tony's could fit into one box. "Hey, you two done eating? Because I am stuffed, you're welcome to my box." He rotated the box towards the two gods and shoved it to them. 

"Thank you, Sir Stark, but I too am filled."

So all it took to fill Thor was one huge supreme pizza? Jane exaggerated his appetite. 

Tony turned to Loki, "What about you, Snow White? You done?"

Loki glared at him but nodded all the same. 

Clapping his hands together, Tony stood up. As he grabbed all three boxes, he started speaking, "Blondie, tell me you didn't forget the key to the cuffs, they look heavy. And now that we've all taken the edge off our hunger, do you want to get started doing the thing we decided on doing so Rudolph doesn't kill us all in our sleep with the twitch of a finger."

"I did not forget the key to the restraints! Loki, that was one time! One time hundreds of years ago!" Thor declared petulantly. Apparently, this was a well worn argument between the two of them. 

"Thor, you had one job! You were to sneak into the camp and get me out of the shackles! You barely managed the first part and utterly failed at the second!" Retorted Loki. It was obvious that the bickering was well worn, no real malice in Loki's tone. 

Tony intervened. "Why don't we agree to let hundred year old matters rest. Wow. I never thought I would say that unless I was referring to England and France. God, you guys are old." Loki looked affronted while Thor remained neutral. 

"I am not _old_ , Stark. The All-Father is _old_ , Yggdrasil is _old_. I am barely two millennia!" Loki corrected harshly.

He raised his hands in mock surrender, "Alright, alright, sensitive God of Vanity. Two thousand years is not old." He acquiesced. Loki didn't refute it. "Now that we've determined that Point Break didn't forget the keys, how about we get these things switched out so our least favorite reindeer can start doing hocus pocus again. This time without hurting anyone." 

The larger god pulled out a small bag out of God knows where, and withdrew two small bracelets. Reaching back into the pouch, he pulled out a small necklace. All three items appeared to be inscribed with a large amount of symbols, although the ones on the necklace were obviously different, being both larger and rounder.

"What instructions did Fa-- the All-Father give you, Thor?" Loki asked hesitantly. Tony could feel apprehension coiling in his gut, and he knew it wasn't his. 

"Father instructed me to hold you down with Mjolnir while Anthony and I switch your bindings, and I teach him to regulate your magic." Thor replied, voice subdued. 

"Won't that crush him?" Tony asked, because that magic hammer could crush metal dragons, let alone a living thing. Not that Tony would care, except that now his and Loki's well being relied on one another and Tony was finally feeling well enough to work. 

Shaking his head, the god raised his hand, and Mjolnir flew from where it had rested by the elevator. He placed it on the table. "Not if I don't wish it to."

And that? That was cool. "Neato, buddy." He frowned. "That is the last time I ever say that, Jarvis, remind me." The ever watchful voice confirmed its orders.

"So, Rudolph, where do you want to do this, we can use the table, couch, floor, bed, I think I might even have a dentist's chair down in the lab. Don't give me that look, at the time it was important that I had it." Pepper had given him the same look when he had originally asked for it, but once he explained why he needed it, she had accepted his reasoning. Or maybe she had decided it just wasn't worth protesting, because the actual reason he wanted it was so he could say he had it. "Wait. No. Nevermind. I'm sorry to disappoint, but the dentist chair is out. It's not here, but in Malibu." 

"The rug in the commons area will do fine. It is only expected to last thirty minutes, correct?" 

-*-

The rug was humiliating.

Loki knew that it would be humiliating no matter where they did this, but being reduced to the floor made his teeth clench. The floor was for servants and the like. 

But he was a prisoner now, so wasn't that where he belonged? Stark hadn't been informed because Loki was certain he would take advantage. Helblindi had only allowed Loki the information about why his body rebelled if certain stipulations were met. 

The necklace Stark would receive had runes of power and control, while his fetters were runes of obedience. 

His biological brother was seeking to humiliate, and damn him but it was working.

Being held down with Mjolnir reminded him of when had fell off the Bifrost. He had let go with the intention to die, nothing was supposed to survive the nothingness. But he did and now he was here, being restrained by his bro-- Thor's hammer. 

There wasn't really any pressure where the blasted hammer sat on his abdomen, but he couldn't move. He was reduced to laying there, accepting his imprisonment. 

One of the first things they did after holding him down was take off the magic banishing chains, then they ignored him. Thor had to explain to Stark how it worked, because of course he couldn't just let matters rest. 

Loki felt like he could finally breathe, having had the restraints on for what felt like an eternity. He was around every time they discussed his fate, when they took him to Jötunheimr, where the king wanted his head until he heard the news. That the one who attempted genocide was a frost giant too, and that he was a monster to both realms.

_The cuffs were only ever off in his cell, a bare empty thing with a long chair that doubled as a bed. He yearned to be put back in that dreary room, if only to allow his magic to breathe._

_To say he did not take the idea of the bond well would be an understatement. If he had his magic there would have been no palace left on the frozen realm. It meant that he could no longer deny he was a Jötun. As long as his form was one of the Æsir he could deny it, not only to himself but to the majority of the Æsir._

_They had to find out who his mate was, and could only do so by seeing his native skin and all the markings that it contained. He could tolerate being talked about like he wasn't there, but he would_ not _reveal his skin. Two Æsir held his arm while his protests were ignored as the All-Father removed the magic that kept his right form. The All-Father's guard had to be replaced with two of Helblindi's before Loki could damage them with the chill of his skin._

 _Loki didn't spend time in this form, is was hideous, dangerous,_ wrong _and he could feel every difference. The air in the palace wasn't as cold, there were ridges along his brow, horns protruding from his hairline. He hung his head and could see his reflection in the iced floor and saw crimson eyes staring back at him, surrounded by blue. He didn't want to think about what was different between his legs. He was still the same height, a runt, good for nothing, as he was in his usual body._

Norns, Stark must never find out about that form, _was all Loki could think now. He would test it, poke it, prod it, until nothing was left. Loki would allow him to, he wasn't permitted to refuse._

_Helblindi had grabbed his face, forcing him to look upward into eye matching his own._

_"You have used magic to keep your symptoms of the unfulfilled bond at bay. That will be no more." The blue king stated, "You have to accept the bond, and they will go away on their own." Helblindi waved his hand and the flimsy sheilds he had in place disintegrated; feelings invaded his mind, emotions that weren't his own (fear anger loneliness pain exhaustion) settled into his skull, bringing a migraine strong enough to make his daughter weep. He slumped in the guards hold, knees not quite hitting the floor, their grips loosened until they barely held him by his wrists._

_"Is this your form of revenge?" he spat, "Bringing me both mental and physical pain? I thought you would just kill me outright, brother." Loki mocked him._

_The king grabbed his hair and forced his head up, "We are not brothers, Loki. Even if you had been raised here we would not have been brothers. You were a runt, if you hadn't died you would be locked in the palace, no one but a few servants would ever see you. Do not think we are equals in this world." He snarled, "You were third born and almost killed Fárbauti. You would be nothing then as you are now."_

_Loki didn't reply, face impassive._

_"Let him go. I have determined who his mate is, and now he is too weak to escape." The guards dropped the weakened former prince, who collapsed onto the ground, glaring at both his adopted and biological families. But he couldn't move. The overwhelming press of emotions he couldn't control destroyed his energy reserves._

_"Do you know an Anthony Stark, son of Howard Stark?" Inquired Helblindi, tongue stumbling over the unfamiliar words._

_Loki stiffened. It had to be a different Stark. It could not be that Stark. He threw that Stark out of a window. That Stark would kill him._

_Their voices faded as he worried about his fate._

Thor had finally finished explaining to the mortal the process of controlling his magic. The bracelets would start off allowing no magic use, but with each wish more would be given back to him. He grew more restless the longer Mjolnir was resting on him. 

"Are you nearly done or do you have to discuss where the bracelet goes as well?" Loki asked, annoyed. Stark could ask his questions _later_ when Loki wasn't bored out of his mind waiting. 

"Thor, do the bracelets go around his wrists or his a--" Stark asked immediately. 

Loki cut him off, "You are insufferable." 

Stark smiled, and Loki could feel the happiness he was getting out of the situation. He hated it. "I have a reputation to maintain, Sweetcheeks."

He hated the nicknames even more.

"Thor, do we have everything we need?" 

The oaf nodded and grabbed a wrist. All of Loki's instincts told him to struggle to not let him be imprisoned again but he didn't want to die and he allowed the thin chain or wrap around his arm, sealed with a single word Frigga and the All-Father had given him. He didn't fight the second chain either, focusing on the fact that when Stark gave his say-so he could use magic again. 

Unless Stark wouldn't give his say so unless Loki did favors for him.

He could do favors. If they were necessary he could do favors. 

Loki didn't feel any different once the bracelets were on, until the blonde muttered a few words and Loki's magic, free for a few precious moments was shoved back into a cage. Without even his order, it began to circumvent the cage, looking for weaknesses in the bindings. He could feel its desperateness to be used, to not be restricted.

It did this every time magic restrictors came into play, whether it was a clock, chains, another's spell in battle. 

"Let me up. I assure you, these chains have sufficiently taken away my magic." 

Thor lifted Mjolnir off his stomach, and with the grace he learned as a prince he rose. 

"For the time being, Loki has no magic, and will continue to have no magic until you give your wish that he does." Thor informed Stark, and hadn't he already done that when Loki was on the floor. 

"Right. Um. Loki Laufeyson, you are allowed the use of your magic as long as you tell me honestly, what you are about to do, for shape shifting, and whatever else. If you shape shift tell me what your new form will look like, and if you're teleporting tell me where you're going. Unless your life is in the balance and if that's the case you're welcome to do whatever you need to to live. You are not permitted to use your magic to harm anyone, unless it is as a last resort self defense. The exception to this rule is in the case of shields, in which case you are permitted to injure someone who is harming the person or thing you've placed the shield on." Stark finished, eyes screwing up, as though if they rolled back far enough he could remember if that was everything. "Unless that person who is harming the thing is me, and if that is the case tell me before you fry my ass."

Every rule that fell into place weakened where his magic was encaged and he could push through and use it. As a test, he attempted to cause Thor injury, but once his intentions were known, his magic stopped working. His mother did her job well.

"May I conjure a small ball of fire? It will not harm any of your belongings, but is to test the bindings." Loki asked, polite as ever. He wasn't feeling polite, but knew not to anger the man who held his freedom in his hands. 

"Yeah. Go for it. Don't burn anything."

Focusing a small part of his magic, a small flame erupted in his hands. He tossed it back and forth in his hands for a few moments, before throwing it at Thor. Before it left his hands the magic dissipated before snapping back into its prison. 

"What the hell was that, Rudolph?!" Stark yelped. 

"I told you, to test the bindings. I was not able to burn Thor, despite the fact that I would very much like to. It works." He explained, bored. 

"Yeah, okay, just don't do that again. You almost made my heart burst out of my chest, which would be a very bad thing to happen, it might get stabbed with this shrapnel." Stark babbled. 

Loki looked at him disdainfully before turning and walking out of the commons area, calling out "I am going to rest," leaving both his not-brother and his mate behind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there we end with Loki being a dick. 
> 
> If you see any major typos or grammar mistakes please let me know. 
> 
> I also realize that Thor may be out of character and that I'm kind of ignoring him, as Loki, but then Loki would ignore his brother.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bonding time.

As far as Tony could tell, Loki was actually resting. He didn't feel any emotions coming off the god, and he hadn't been disturbed while talking to Thor. Every time he asked Jarvis, he received a "Mr. Loki is resting, sir" and unless Loki managed to hack his AI in the day he'd been here, he was resting. For what, Tony didn't exactly know, and it made him kinda nervous. 

If what happened last night was any precedent, within a few hours Tony would be forced to go to bed and sleep. He could only hope that Loki didn't actually sleep this much on a normal basis, because he was never going to get any work done. There was always the couch in the lab, and maybe if Tony was in close proximity with the god it would count like they were sleeping together. Except he didn't trust Loki as far as he could throw him without the suit, and definitely not in his labs where he could find the specs on hundreds of different weapons. 

Not that Jarvis would let him, but Jarvis probably wasn't magic proof, if only because Tony hadn't had the chance to really study it before everything went to shit. 

Talking to Thor was a relaxing experience, he didn't let the nicknames spewing out of Tony's mouth faze him. He was also more than willing to discuss his brother and what their situation meant, more so than Loki, at least, which wasn't too hard. The younger god had been pretty closed lipped about what being a bond-thingy meant after their first discussion. He also barely knew what things were like outside of Earth, before the Invasion he hadn't really seen a need. Now he had an earnest interest on the affairs outside the world as he knew it. He wanted to know how magic worked, which could wait until Loki woke up, and why the Frosty Giants hated Thor's people. 

That was how he found himself drinking a bottle of scotch with the God of Thunder himself. According to Thor, Midgardian alcohol didn't really affect him. If he drank enough he could feel a slight buzz, but hardly anything more than that. 

"Remind me to get you to drink vodka with Natasha sometime." Tony was reasonably sure that Natasha's vodka could get Captain Spangles drunk, let alone Thor. 

"I would be honored to drink with the Lady Widow. She is a most honorable comrade." Thor said proudly. 

"She certainly is something else. I bet she could kill a man with her pinky finger. I know she can do it with one hand or her thighs. Could you imagine going out like that, with Miss Spider's thighs? I don't have a death wish but if I had to die before my time, that would be the way I wanted to go." Tony sipped from his glass, "She used to work for me, but it turned out that it was under orders from SHIELD. They fooled a lot of the things we had, background checks and the like, and she was Natalie. I didn't realize she was deadly until she was sparing with Happy and she kicked his ass. _That_ was a sight to see."

Thor nodded, pouring himself another two fingers of the amber liquid. "The Lady Sif is a fearsome warrior as well. Many underestimate her because she is a woman, and soon regret it." He chucked, "When she first joined us Fandral did not think so highly of her. To him she was just another court lady with a whim. Sif was most displeased, and challenged him to spar with her. He lost, badly, and ever since they have been friends and have defended each others life multiple times."

"Yeah, Happy teased Nat about how this wasn't a little boot camp or whatever anymore, and, honestly, I'm pretty sure Nat disobeyed orders by knocking him on his ass. She didn't regret it though." Tony smiled at the memory, yeah, she had lied to him about who she was and said mean things about him, but he wanted her on his side of a fight.

Thor raised his glass, "A toast to our fellow shield-maidens."

"To our frightening female fighters." Tony clinked their glasses together before swallowing what remained in his. He refilled it. 

"What's with Asgard and the Big Frosty Snowmen anyway? You all look similar, so I don't really get the racism between your two species." Tony grimaced. "Not that I'm condoning racism."

Thor looked at him strangely before shaking his head. "Frost Giants and the Æsir look very different. Where did you get that idea, Anthony?"

Tony shrugged. "Loki looks like you do. Is it the dark hair? Or do you two actually look really different and Loki is hiding with magic?" That would make sense. His... thing didn't allude to the Frosty Snowmen fondly, instead sounding full of hate and ashamed. 

"It is Father's magic that keeps Loki looking how he does now. Without it he looks much similar, with a few, marked differences." 

"What kind of differences?" Tony questioned, because god knew he wasn't going to get this kind of information out of Loki.

Thor looked uncomfortable, "It is not my place to say. You will have to ask my brother." He closed the matter. 

Tony could have groaned. He may have. "Fine, fine. I'll go ask Frosty tomorrow. Do you know how he reacted to the fact that we're apparently going to be together for 50 years? I assume he didn't take it as well as yours truly."

"He did not. We decided to ask Helblindi if he knew what was wrong with him; once we provided the symptoms he demanded to see Loki saying it was a matter of life and death. If were are being truthful, Anthony, I believe he was more concerned about your welfare than about my brother's." Thor confided. Tony could believe it, if Loki really had tried to anhilate their race, they wouldn't have minded if he did die. "We visited Jötunheimr with Loki in tow, where Helblindi revealed that Loki had a mate and that Loki had used magic while in his cell to stop all side effects of the bond. When Helblindi removed the shields, my brother was distraught. By this time he was in his native skin, and when he announced that an Anthony Stark was his mate, he left Loki on his own. I admit that I did not pay too much attention to him after the fact, as Helblindi was discussing what a bond usually entailed. Whenever I glanced at him he appeared to be struggling with the symptoms he had previously kept at bay."

"Spill, Blondie, what does a bond usually entail?" Tony was excited. If he knew what to expect he could better ignore it.

"The two of you will eventually be able to do more than glimpse each others emotions, but you should be able to shield yourself. That can only be done after you consummate the bond." Tony averted his eyes, it was one thing to discuss sex, it was another thing to discuss sex with your partner's brother. "Frost Giants can only have legitimate heirs with their bond mate, although I do not think that applies to you two. When one of you dies, the other will feel empty, at the very least missing something. And my brother is likely to be tried for his crimes on Midgard and Asgard if you pass before him. The rest is for Loki to tell you. During the initial discussion he was not paying attention so we told him it afterwards, once he had gotten his usual form back."

Thor being stingy with the information was getting old really fast. "Huh. Although if his migraine was anything like mine, I understand why he wasn't paying attention. So when I die, he still gets to live? That's... Expected. I guess he goes back to Asgard to answer for the things in New Mexico. How old are you two anyway? Obviously over two thousand years, but do you have a more exact number?"

Thor's brow furrowed, before smoothing out, "I am around two thousand nine hundred of your years. Loki is around two thousand one hundred. Physically, we are around the age of twenty to thirty, by your standards."

"Jesus Christ is younger than you two. So is that like one hundred of our years to one of yours?" Tony ran through the math, "Yeah, that would make you twenty-nine, physically, and him twenty-one. Makes sense. Except Norse mythology was in its heyday around, what, 1300 years ago? 1000 years ago? That would make you 19 at the time. I've read over what you've done, and I totally believe a 19 year old would do some of that. But I've also read what Loki's done, and I _don't_ believe an eleven year old could pull some of the stunts he's said to have pulled." Like getting married. Why would an eleven year old get married?

"The Æsir, and Loki too while he wore our skin, age differently. It takes us approximately six hundred of your years to reach physical maturity. We have excess of four thousand years during our peak of life, and then have 500 to 1000 years or so before we die of old age. My father is reaching the end of peak, and is aging." Thor's voice turned somber. "If he continues to take the Odinsleep he will live the full thousand years more. It is why I must go back to Asgard so often, I have been raised to be a prince, and a king, but I still need to learn more."

"So one day you'll be King Thor? You have to stay the night. Housing royalty is on my bucket list. Frosty doesn't count, he was sorta disowned by both of your families. Don't look at me like that, he disowned himself. He has Jarvis call him Mr. Loki instead of Mr. Odinson or Laufeyson." Tony defended himself, and Thor didn't argue. 

"Friend, what is a 'bucket list'? There are only so many types of buckets, why would you need your own list?" his guest asked, confused. 

"It's a list you make before you kick the bucket." At Thor's puzzled look he elaborated, "Before you die."

"I should like to make a 'bucket list' before I leave your realm. It will be fun.

"And it would would please me greatly if I spent the night in your home." Thor enthused. 

"That's great, big guy!" Replied Tony. "Before I got the really really bad headaches I was thinking about using these spare floors of the tower as residential area for each of the Avengers. That would be one for Cap, Birdbrain, the Soviet Princess, Jade Jaws, if I can convince him that my science equipment is superior to whatever he's doing out B.F.E. and then you, of course. And as long as you're here you can help me furnish your floor. I could make good guesses for all of the others; red, white, blue vintage for Capsicle; Zen for Bruce, whatever Zen is, I'll get Jarvis' opinion on that later." Tony chattered excitedly about his plans, "But you, I don't know what kind of things they have on Asgard, so while you're here would you mind helping me pick out furniture? I want to have you enjoy the floor as much as possible."

"Would it be possible for the Lady Jane to room with me on the floor?" inquired the larger man. 

"Yeah! Sure! You could probably have three or four guests at any given time. Plus a kitchenette." Tony jabbered on, his mind having it's first real task since he got it back. 

"Friend, it is growing late, and both of us have had enough alcohol. Perhaps we should retire for the night." suggested Thor, emphasizing his statement with a yawn.

"'Course, buddy. Jarvis, is there a spare room on this floor that hasn't been used?" The inventor asked.

" _There is not. However, a large guest room is available on the floor below yours, sir._ " the dispassionate voice responded.

"Is that alright with you? I'm pretty sure there's a real kitchen on that floor. It probably has various non-perishables like pop tarts and noodles stocked. You're welcome to eat as much of the good as you'd like. Jarvis can explain to you what it is if I'm not around, just ask a question and he'll hear you." Tony eagerly explained, leading Thor to the elevator. When they arrived on the floor, Tony led him to the guest room. Once he was sure that Thor was fine, he wished him a good night before he headed down to the labs. 

The moment the elevators glided open, Tony called out "Bring up the blue prints to all the empty residential floors at the top of the building. I know there's at least five."

The floors were all empty, having very lfew additions made other than a master bedroom and a large bath. 

"Show me the one right below where Thor is staying right now." Four plans disappeared, each into their own folder on the left hand side of the screen. "Thank you, Jarvis."

 _"My pleasure, sir."_ replied the AI smoothly. 

"Jarvis, should we put Hawkeye on this floor? He'd be closer to the roof, but on the other hand he would also be closer to Loki."

 _"I believe, sir, that it would not be wise to place Agent Barton on the ninety-third floor. I would suggest placing Mr. Odinson between Mr. Loki and the rest of the Avengers. I would also like to suggest that if you are serious about finding Dr. Banner and inviting him back to the Tower, that you create an area where if he,"_ there was a slight pause, _"Hulks out, then he can be kept safely. The doctor did not seem to be the type to stay where he could injure a large group of innocent people without a contingency plan."_ Jarvis finished. 

"I'm hurt, I'm always serious. I do see your point, Jarvis. Make a note somewhere. Show me it again once we decide, exactly, which floor he's going to go on." Tony stared at the plans for Thor's floor before adding two rooms, seperated by a large bath. "How many close friends or colleagues does Point Break's lady friend have?"

_"Ms. Foster seems to be close friends with both Erik Selvig and Darcy Lewis."_

"So two. Which means that Thunderboy is going to need three guest bedrooms plus the master." Tony muttered to himself before rearranging the rooms on screen. "Should each guest have it's own bath? I can make one huge bathroom, one largish and one small, or three small ones."

_"Sir, what you would consider a small bath would be thought of as large by much of the public. Each guest would likely want their own bathroom."_

"Thanks, J." As he added the extra baths, a nervousness crawled its way into his stomach. The longer he ignored it the more the feeling intensified. 

_"Sir, I feel as though I should inform you that Mr. Loki is fidgeting in his rest and appears to be distressed."_

This must have been the feeling that alerted Loki to come to his room last night. "Save that file and remind me to show it to Thor tomorrow. And when did I teach you to rhyme?" He ordered his AI while walking towards the elevator. Once inside the doors immediately closed and the elevator began to shoot upwards, reaching the penthouse in less than a minute. The closer he reached the resting god, the more the feeling abated.

He opened the door to his room to find Loki curled up on top of the sheets. His lips were moving and as Tony inches closer he could hear a mumbled "Yes, m'aware of wha' I am.... 'nster.... no please no stop stop."

Tony began to feel guilty for both eavesdropping, and not waking him up as soon as he entered the room. He reached out to gently shake Loki's shoulder. "Hey, Reindeer Games, wake up. You don't want to be stuck where you are, trust me, I know. I usually have Jarvis wake me up whenever they happen, if I don't wake up on my own." The second his hand made contact with Loki's shoulder, the slumbering god's eyes flew open, and a hand shot out to grab Tony's wrist before throwing it off his shoulder. "Woah, there, Cupcake, only trying to--"

"What do you want, Stark?" Loki growled, eyes scanning the room. 

"If you had let me finish, I was going to tell you I tried to wake you up from a nightmare. You were mumbling in your sleep and I got this gut feeling you needed company." The younger man explained. 

"Ah. Thank you, then. However I would not suggest touching me when I am submerged in a nightmare. I have been prone to violence." Loki looked a bit sheepish. "Are you going to stay here or go back to what you were originally doing?" 

"Depends. Are you going to go back to sleep? If you're not I could use a second, third if you count Jarvis, opinion on these floors I'm designing." Jarvis counted. It was definitely a third opinion.

"I am not feeling particularly inclined to sleep. I would enjoy a distraction." 

"Then come on. Jarvis, secure all the files except the ones that we were working on." Tony walked toward the elevator, Loki right behind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And we end with nothing having reat happened but bonding time and the prospect of more bonding time but with a different person. 
> 
> If you see any major grammar or spelling mistakes, please let me know!
> 
> Criticisms are always appreciated!
> 
> I feel as though I should clarify on Bruce:He stayed in the tower for a few weeks after the alien invasion, but then left to go help in third world countries with his medical expertise. He didn't trust himself in New York City after the whole Harlem thing.


	6. Chapter 6

The ride to the labs was uneventful, and by the time the elevator stopped Stark was fidgety. 

The specs to Thor's floor were up on the screen and he moved in front of the screens before fidgeting with the arrangement of the master bath.

Loki debated following him before finding a suitable chair. He watched Stark's utter concentration on the floor before he abruptly saved it and told Jarvis to pull up the plans for floor number ninety three. 

"I was thinking of inviting all of the Avengers to live here. And you would live on my floor. Your brother is going to be floor number ninety-four, because no matter what order the others are in, they'll feel safer if he's between you and them." Loki frowned, but he could see the merit in such an action. "Tweety Bird will be the farthest away from you, floor eighty-nine because he will attempt to kill you the first time he sees you. He may even try to kill you after that first time even though I apparently need you to live. I'd probably try to kill you if I didn't need you to live. Sorry. Actually no I'm not. You threw me out a window."

Loki grimaced. 

"If it is any consoliditation, had I not thrown you out the window we would not be here. Apparently the bonds are initiated by touch." Loki wished he had never touched Stark, and now he couldn't make do without.

"Seriously? That's not cool. At all. 'Here I tried to kill you now you're involuntarily joined until death do you part' ? That's bullshit, Xena." he complained. "You got me off track. Not that it's hard but still. I have the placement of Thor and Barton, but the other three I'm iffy over where to put them. The Russian is probably going to go on floor ninety, right above her maybe boyfriend. I couldn't really tell. They're close though and don't tell anyone I'm the one who told you that.

"The communal kitchen could go on floor ninety-one. Not only does that mean it is in the middle of everyone but it means the spies are even farther away from me. On the other hand, Clint won't let me forget that I kept him and his spider separated from the rest of them. And he'll mention it all the time. But then I could make the kitchen eighty-nine and move them up a floor. Which leaves both Bruce and Popsicle on floors..." The more Stark talked the more Loki wanted to strangle him. 

"Do you ever shut up?" the god asked, irritated by the constant babble. 

"No. I think better when I talk and you're not going stop me. This would be a better conversation if you said something." he said pointedly. 

He ran through what he knew about each of the team members. The inventor was correct in thinking they would feel safer if Thor stood between them. He was also right in thinking that Barton would wish to be as far away from Loki as possible, if he didn't manage to kill him. The Spider would want to be near her partner, and despite what Stark thought, probably wouldn't care if they were separated from the rest of the group. He tried to remember what the Captian and and the green man were like before he returned, "The spies won't care if they're separate. Place the kitchen above the Widow. The Captain will wish to be as close to me as possible, I will continue to be a threat. That leaves you one floor for the green beast. Now be quiet." 

"I don't do quiet. Not my style. But I see your point with Rogers." He fiddled with the screens, typing in file names and floor numbers, how many baths and beds. 

The technology was ancient to both Loki and Thor, they hadn't used screens in Asgard for well over a millennia. If he used it at all he would likely be clumsy with it. But Midgard was slower, and perhaps this was the most advanced they had. It was Stark's, and if the man did anything consistently it was live in luxury and use the best of everything.

"I was thinking of leaving New York for a while, during construction. I have this house in Malibu, better lab, helper bots. It's kind of alone out there so I might be able to convince Bruce to visit. If that's okay with you? I know the last time you two really talked he smashed you into the floor, but he's actually a really good guy. You were the first person the Hulk beat up in months. So unless you actually have strong objections to going, I was thinking this Thursday would be a good time to leave. No one travels on Thursdays. Too Thursday-y."

Stark looked over at Loki hopefully, and Loki felt a wave of apprehension run through him. "If the Hulk is your method to kill me, I feel as though I should warn you that if I die, you will also die. If you're unlucky enough, you'll live in agonizing emotional pain." 

His face fell, "No, Brucie and I were going to discuss physics and how the suit could be better and how he needs to get back in a lab and stop being a medicine man because his brain is going to _waste_ out there. Maybe compare your magic to our science, because Jane said that Thor said they were the same thing. But that's she said he said and not direct from the source. Are they the same thing? If you don't want to test it in the lab, that's fine too, but you'll miss out on all the fun we're going to have." 

"What if Banner refuses to go to, Malleboo, was it? Will you work alone, because that is something you could easily do here." Loki wanted to stay in an area he knew, even if it was passing glimpses here and there. He didn't want to move to an unknown area with unknown qualities.

Stark acted as though the mere idea that Banner wouldn't join the two of them in his other home was inconceivable. "Bruce will come. I got him to promise before you started splitting my skull in half."

He didn't want to admit it, but he feared the green monster, it was easily his strength, and twice or maybe three times his mass. Stark probably knew, could feel it coming off him, but Loki didn't have to admit it. 

"He's not going to hurt you. He might get close to going green but as long as he has fair warning he will be fine. Besides, the Hulk likes me. I might even be able to talk him down from breaking your bones." Stark's earnest look made Loki want to crawl in a hole. It didn't much matter what he wanted, everything would go Stark's way, where they lived, how Loki was treated, how they would have sex. And he couldn't bring himself to care.

"You inspire so much confidence I think I might just burst." He muttered. 

He laughed, "That's the ticket! So, next week sometime, we'll fly out there. I just need to contact him."

As his mate organized and then reorganized all the floor plans, Loki fiddled his hands. An itch grew in the back of his mind, "May I transport a kettle and mug from the kitchen to here?" 

He looked over, "Go for it. You don't need my permission to leave."

Loki sighed, he was supposed to be bonded to one of the most intelligent people in his realm and yet the man was an idiot. "With magic. I need your permission for that."

"Same answer. Go magic yourself a kettle and mug. It doesn't have to be formal does it? Let me know if it does." It worked, and his attention turned back to his screen.

"I seem to have forgotten to bring tea bags as well. May I magic in a few types? They'll be kept near the kettle." Norns, if he had to ask to use any form of magic... Patience was not a virtue of his when it didn't suit him. The kettle was full of water, and he flicked the switch, before too long it started boiling.

"Yeah. Tea." He spoke absently, hardly paying attention to the god.

"Thank you." He opened a random box and pulled out the bag. A few of the minions he had during the invasion drank tea when he had no use for them. He poured it into the mug, a burgundy base with a large SI in white on the side. He let it steep for a few minutes. 

Making a show of drinking it, he gagged. "Sugar. Can I bring in sugar?" 

"Mm-hmm." There was an edge of annoyance in the voice.

He added the sugar and sipped it again. He frowned at it, not wanting to make it obvious that he was putting on a show. 

"What about some cream?" He inquired. 

"Yeah, whatever." The annoyance was more pronounced.

"Spoon?" 

"Jesus, are you trying to prove a point here? I know you're not that forgetful, you remember Bruce when you only met him as the Hulk." He snapped, eyes darting back and forth between the screen and Loki's face. 

"Yes, I am. It will majorly inconvenience the both of us if I can't perform mundane magic without asking you first. Losen the bonds so I can do things without bothering you. Keep the harmful magic for all I care, give me the opportunity to use magic when it won't hurt anyone. The bonds will recognize if I use magic for dark purposes." Loki explained, gesticulating with both hands. "I will go mad off I have to ask you if I can turn off the lights or if I can magic the cutlery clean."

Tony looked at him, suspicious. "You win, princess. As long as your magic won't hurt anyone, you are free to use it however you want. Unless it's on me. Keep your magic the hell away from me." 

Loki could feel his magic loosen, going from a dripping faucet to a pouring spicket. It was less power than he was used to, but he spent a large portion of his magic tricking other people.

He curled in the chair, big enough to hold two people, probably comfortable enough for the inventor to sleep when he didn't want to go upstairs. As he settled down, he recalled that he wanted to place shields upon both himself and Stark. The easiest way to get the runes on Stark would be to carve them onto his armor, but he didn't always have his armor on hand. And there were other threats than when he wore the armor. Another mortal could wish to kill him, or beat him, or just kidnap him. 

He could etch the runes into a ring or a necklace, but it would require the genius to remember to wear them all the time, and unless Jarvis reminded him, Loki had no doubt that he would forget. He could put them on his skin, but that would be incredibly painful and he didn't know if he could last throughout the application. If they shared emotions they would share pain.

Or, at least, Loki would share Stark's pain. He was certain that he felt more than his mate did, presumably because his magic initiated the bond. At the back of his mind he could feel contentment that wasn't his own, and it was a comfortable feeling. Much more comfortable than the early feeling of revulsion and fear that accompanied it. Stark had every right to be repulsed by him, if his ancestors weren't enough, he dragged the man into an entanglement he didn't even consent to.

He considered the runes that were available. His fate was directly tied to the well being of his companion, encouraging the strength of the enchantments. He knew the strongest he could make, of protection, healing, retaliation, strength. It would make the inventor nigh invincible to anyone in this realm, and he would be strong enough against foes from other realms. He might not win, but he wouldn't die.

"If I gave you a ring with protection woven into it, would you wear it?"

He looked over, "Well," he paused, "is it ugly?"

"Whatever design you would wish it to be. But you would have to wear it at all times." Loki could work with whatever he was given, but Stark had to make an effort to use it if it was going to be worth anything. "When you sleep, bathe, in battle, if we fuck, you would always need to wear it. I can adjust it so it will fit perfectly, as well as a retrieving charm, should it somehow become lost."

"Yeah. Probably. Do you need to take measurements of my fingers or toes or something? Or are you not only skilled at magic but at guessing too?" 

"Are you left or right handed?" It wouldn't do to create a ring that would just get in the way of his tinkering.

"Left. I know, I know, bad omen, but you're the witch and I'm not going to Massachusetts so we shouldn't have a problem." He smiled, "Or Oregon. I'm not picky, but both of them have a Salem."

"What are you nattering on about? Nevermind, I don't care." He rose and walked over towards the other man, "Give me your right hand. I need to measure your finger."

"Is that the only finger you need to measure?" he asked, and Loki barely refrained from hitting him. 

"You are a disgusting, crude creature and I regret ever being bonded to you." he muttered, picking up his hand, tracing it, before dropping it. 

"There are people who would kill to be bonded to me. I'm a hot commodity. I'm more wanted than James Dean ever was. I'm still looking for his car." 

"That doesn't make you any less of a crude creature." he grumbled, "Do you have any gold I could use to fashion your ring? I want to make sure it will fit perfectly." He couldn't risk it being lost. Ever. 

"I never saw you use drawings to work your magic before, what's changed? Did your magical staff take away your power, Maleficent?" 

"I can call up energy in a second, you cannot. Now do you have gold or not?" Gold would be pure enough for his uses.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm sure I have a couple gold rings lying around. Use them, I can always get another. Not like money is an object." He waved his hand, "I'm practically done designing the floors, I just need to get them to a construction crew and then we can head out in two days."

"I'm thrilled the other Avengers will be closer to kill me." 

"The only one that will try to kill you will be Barton. Natasha maybe. Speaking of Shield assassins, does Fury know you're here? Or did you sneak in on his left side so he couldn't see you? That's playing dirty, tricking a half blind man like that. Although your dad is missing an eye. Did you learn by making mischief around him? I bet Thir joined you. He has a day named after him, you know. Thor's Day, Thursday. Do you think if I ask him nicely he'll make sure we have clear skies in both LA and New York? We're leaving on his day after all." Loki stopped listening, instead summoning two rings from the inventor's chambers upstairs.

"These mean nothing to you, correct?" 

"Nope. All yours to keep me alive." Loki thought that he might need to make sure that the runes would work against him as well, because his mate was going to drive him mad.

Loki ignored him as he cleared a table and began working on the two rings. He melted them together, creating a lump of gold before shaping it into the perfect size. As he engraved the symbols for protection and retaliation.

"Your Fury does not know I am here, if you wish to tell him I will not stop you. My actions demand punishment or retribution. He will not be able to... Reprimand me as he might wish, due to the connection between us. However, I believe I will be able to aid in your city's recovery." He offered, interrupting the genius's rambling. "I am aware that Thor has a day named after him, I suggested it to the Vikings, back when I worshipped him and his fellow warriors, like younger brothers are wont to do. He is grateful that you have not outright rejected me, and is likely to fix the weather however you would like."

"So if I asked for a thunderstorm to follow Fury for a few days, a tiny one, just to annoy him, he would do it? Keeping that in mind, Mister Cyclops needs his cloud of gloom to exist." Stark looked excited at the prospects of harassing the Director. 

Loki made a non committal noise as he placed power in the printed runes. The band began to take on a small hum. It seemingly had little power, hardly more than a cheap trinket; instead the power was hidden behind a weak front, lest anyone attempt to track what the god deemed important. He focused on carving the marks for strength, both mental and phsyical. 

Loki was not an easy man to live with, especially not for the rest of someone's life. It would be worse considering that he didn't chose to be there. He grafted patience onto the ring, along with magic that would give his partner the strength to fight magical tampering in his mind. The strength of the Captain was the most he could gift; he was a skilled sorcerer, but not even he could give Stark the strength of a god. As the power left him and entered the ring, Loki felt a drain on his powers. 

He glanced up at the mortal, who was busy focusing on the last touches, what seemed to be the kitchens, discussing the pros and cons of each appliance with his invisible servant.

He had one last major category to inscribe onto the band of metal, and it would be by far the hardest. Loki wasn't even sure if he could finish the magic transfer before passing out. He thought he could, but he wasn't certain. And the retrieval charm would still need to be placed on the object, because no matter how much he might stress the importance of the ring, Stark would treat it as carelessly as he treated his other things, a side effect of being rich and wanting for nothing for the majority of his life.

He reviewed the healing runes he knew, speed would be a key factor, but so would protection from just getting sick. Norns, mortals were _weak_. Thousands of things could kill them without leaving a mark. Poison, disease, genetic flaws.

He spent a few moments gathering his thoughts before etching the marks that would protect against sickness, marks that would increase his healing factor threefold, marks that would give his bond mate a higher threshold for pain. 

And he knew it wouldn't be enough. It would hardly ever be enough. He needed a miracle or several to keep the younger man from harm. He needed Idunn's apples, they could increase the lifespan of the mortal, and were likely the only things able to do so.

As the last lines marked the band, Loki gathered all the power he could spare, accessible because this wouldn't harm anyone, could only help. The energy pooled in his mind before he pushed it into the ring, twice the amount of power he placed in the other runes. 

Quickly placing a basic retrieval spell on the golden ring with the last of his magic store, he picked it up and carried it over to the inventor, who had finished his plans and was staring at the god from the chair he had occupied earlier.

"You done? I was watching you and you'd get this really intense look of concentration on your face before you'd look exhausted. I mean, you look awful, like you hadn't slept for a year." 

"Thank you, Stark. You really are a flatterer." Loki grumbled, "I wish to give you your gift upstairs, in our chambers, before I lose consciousness. Come." He wrapped his fingers around the other man's wrist, pulling him into the elevator, his free hand clutching the ring tightly. 

"My floor, J. No stops." He ordered. The lift sped up, delivering them to the floor in less time than it took to reach the lab. 

They walked to the bedroom in companionable silence. Once they entered, Loki released his hold on the mortal. 

"I told you that I would make you shields. This ring will do its best to protect you. You will be stronger, heal faster, any threat made onto your person will be repeated onto the body of your attacker. It should also protect you from sickness. If you lose it, which would be highly disadvantageous for you, I can use a spell to summon it back. Here, it is for your fourth finger on your right hand." He held out the ring, plain except for the small markings littering both the inside and outside of the ring. 

"You know, when I was a kid I used to love _The Lord of the Rings_ , and now I have a magic ring of my very own. Tolkien would be jealous. Can you put the ring on the table over there? I don't like people handing me things." Loki put the ring down on the side table, and Sstark immediately picked it up, sliding onto his ring finger. "I don't feel any different."

"It is a defensive device. There is no reason for you to have incredible strength when you have no need of it. You would need to relearn how to hold things, and I didn't think you would appreciate damaging your equipment. Forgive me if I was incorrect." He explained, "Now I am tired, and I wish to rest. Will you join me?" Loki took off his shirt, leaving his pants untouched as he crawled into the massive bed. 

"Sure, Gandalf." He agreed, stripping down to his underthings before climbing into bed. 

Loki turned to face his bedmate before wriggling over to place his head under the other's chin. The entire time he had spent in Asgard's prisons he had yearned for the comfort of another. He looked up, and saw the younger man's eyes watching him. One of his hands found its way into Anthony's hair, and it began to insistently push down. Loki stretched his neck upwards, just far enough for the slightest brush of lips. The smaller man stiffened, and they soon broken apart, Loki resting his head on Stark's chest, a few inches away from the arc reactor.

"Good night, Anthony." He breathed, allowing himself to fall asleep in the comfort of another's arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And we end with a good night kiss. 
> 
> Any comments/criticisms are appreciated. 
> 
> If you see any major grammar mistakes or typos, please, let me know!
> 
> Let me know if you have any confusion about the plot, it makes sense to me, but then again I'm writing it. I might forget parts and not realize it.
> 
> EDIT: I changed the part where Tony takes the ring from Loki. I had entirely forgotten that he doesn't like people handing him things.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Unbeta'd. All mistakes are my fault.

Tony wasn't tired. He had hardly been tired when they went up to his room, and now with the god's head cradled on his chest, after he _kissed_ him, Tony couldn't even imagine going to sleep. And he couldn't leave, the weight on his chest kept him from moving, and even if he could, within a few hours they would be in the same circumstances that got them to this predicament in the first place. So no, Tony couldn't leave, stuck with his wandering mind and a new catalog of emotions to work through. 

His initial reaction to the barely there press of lips was complete rejection, but before the panicked thoughts could take root they were replaced with confusion. He thought the two of them had reached a mutual agreement that sexual contact would be kept to a minimum, after the bond solidified and kept the two from dying, they wouldn't touch one another. He assumed that it had applied before they consummated the bond, but apparently that wasn't clear. 

Kissing a man was different, not necessarily bad, but different. Loki's lips were thinner than most of the women he had kissed before, thinner than many of the men as well, rougher too. They had none of the softness he had come to expect from his partners kisses. 

And Tony didn't mind the change, just the person on the other end, and that was what bothered him. He thought that being over forty years old would have made the risky behavior, with the guy who tried to subjugate the planet, more shocking, but it didn't, not really. 

The shocking part was the emotion, the tenderness behind it. It was a kiss that one would give to their lover of many years, of affection and love and he and Loki didn't have that. They probably never would have that, and knowing this made the kiss even worse. Because despite the fact that he had everything, Tony still wanted that emotional fulfillment, had since Afghanistan when he realized that he needed to grow up. With Pepper he had gotten close, so close, but he couldn't give her everything, no matter how hard he tried. She had requested space to sort out her emotions, and he could give her that, it was the least she deserved. 

They had shared kisses like that, before, and the sticky feeling of past love stuck to his throat. He glanced down at Loki, face outlined by the light of the reactor, strands of hair covering parts of his face. He was so peaceful when he slept, and Tony could forget, if only for a moment, that he tried to kill him, fucking defenestrated him. And he wanted that feeling again, but he knew he couldn't have it. Not with Loki or Pepper and it was a cruel, cruel joke , Tony Stark, who had everything anyone could ever dream of, couldn't have this. 

He considered how out of it Loki had been, and compared it to when he was in the same state. The god looked dead on his feet as he handed Tony the gift, he probably wouldn't even remember kissing him, and if Tony could act the same way, he could pretend it had never happened, and maybe Loki wouldn't ever remember and they could move on. He could move on and stop moping over what he didn't have.

And the ring, Jesus Christ. He had exhausted himself making it, Tony watched the last runes being put into place, after he finished the Avengers' housing arraignments. He looked on as the energy moved from the trickster to the ring, which gave a faint green glow before looking as unassuming as before.

It looked like a wedding band, about six tenths of a centimeter wide, intricate carvings gracing both the inside and outside of the ring. If he asked, maybe Loki would explain what each marking was. Maybe Tony would explain what wedding rings looked like. 

Tony was touched, and surely Loki could feel that. After the initial outburst of panic the day he had arrived, Tony couldn't really feel Loki's emotions. He couldn't feel the others pain before he had shown up at the tower, which was markedly different from what Loki said he could feel. It probably had something to do with magic. 

And that same magic was what probably encouraged him to press his lips to the gods crown, because he finally had someone to bestow affection on.

The safety the god's presence provided combined with the fact that he was slightly cooler than most of the people Tony had ever shared a bed with made falling asleep easier, even if he wasn't tired.

~

He woke to an empty bed, sheets not quite cold. 

"Sir, it is 9:56 AM, you have no meetings to attend, but I would suggest attempting to contact Dr. Banner if you wish for him to join you in Malibu." 

"Jarvis? Where's Rocky and Bullwinkle?" He mumbled. Jarvis would hear him, Jarvis could understand him if he had ten nails in his mouth, nevermind him fighting off the last dregs of sleep. 

"Mr. Loki is with Mr. Odinson in Mr. Odinson's kitchen. They appear to be discussing the differences between Asgardian food and Midgardian food." Jarvis dutifully replied. 

"No. No calling Earth 'Midgard'. Call it Earth. We're not calling their world something they don't. "

"As you wish, sir."

"Start the shower, usual temperature, and whatever, and when I get out of it start the coffee maker in Thor's kitchen. But tell them before they ruin it. No demonic coffee makers making a perfectly brewed coffee in my house. Just you."

"Done, sir. May I suggest using a towel this time? You complained about the feel of wet clothes when you hadn't used one before." 

"It was one time! You act like it happens every time I take a morning shower." Tony protested, pulling himself out of bed, joint creaking as he stretched. 

"You disregard the use of a towel twenty-three percent of the time you take morning showers, sir. My suggestion was not based on a single particular incident; unless said incident was detrimental to your well being, such as not letting Dummy have the fire extinguisher. He felt insulted and threatened to overturn the lab looking for it. The first time you made your clothes wet it was decidedly not--" 

"Jarvis, I get the point. And if Dummy wants to continue to man, or rather bot the fire extinguisher he should stop spraying thinks that are not on fire. It gets in the parts and more importantly makes me look like I programmed a faulty bot." He complained. Tony had a lab assistant, once, who thought Dummy had glitches in his programming. When he mentioned it Tony told him that no, Dummy was perfectly fucking fine thank you, he was programmed to be a bit clumsy. A lot excited. 

"As long as you see it, sir." The voice sing songed, and how did it do that in a flat British monotone was beyond Tony, but he was impressed none the less. 

Tony didn't reply as he walked to the bathroom, already beginning to fill with steam. He shucked his shorts and threw them towards the hamper in the corner, maybe missing. He didn't pay attention to where they ended up before stepping into the shower, door closing behind him. Loki told him to keep the ring on even while he showered, and Tony trusted his craftsmanship enough that it wouldn't fall off. 

He soaked for a few minutes before soaping himself up and shampooing his hair. A dabble of conditioner in his hair after he rinsed the shampoo, washing it out again, before manually turning off the water, stepping out and grabbing a towel. 

When he was sufficiently dry, Tony wrapped the towel around his waist, and stared at himself in the mirror. His hair could probably use a trim, it looked like he was trying to copy Bruce's style without enough curl to make it really work. He could get that done later, but the amount of stubble and facial hair on his face had to be fixed immediately.

He trimmed then shaved until it resembled what it used to be before the Battle. He washed his face and moved to his closet, finding an old t-shirt and a well worn pair of sweats.

He left the room and walked to the elevator, which took him to the floor Thor was on without even being prompted. The sounds of Thor talking could be heard once the doors of the elevator had opened.

His voice faded as Tony neared, before letting out a friendly "Good morrow, Anthony." 

"Mornin', big guy." Tony mumbled, pulling out his favorite mug and filling it with the black nectar he so very needed. 

Loki wasn't glaring at him, and Tony couldn't feel any hard feelings after last night, and that was a relief after the first day he was here. Tony was not going to be able to get the image of the god's red eyes on that first night out of his head, even if he couldn't tell now that anything had ever been wrong with Loki.

"I worked on the plans for your floor, and I want to run it by you before you go see Jane or go back to the castle in the sky."

"I would be pleased to see how you have designed my chambers in your residence!" enthused Thor. 

"Great! I have a tablet that you can pick furniture on. Don't worry about price, because believe me, I have it all covered. You're more than welcome to get whatever you want, but it will all have to fit on the floor. You can even place all the furniture, it'll be like Barbie Designs A House." Tony drank some of his coffee, swallowing a few mouthfuls before speaking again. "Jarvis, where do we keep the larger StarkPads? I know they're in this building somewhere."

"The closest twenty inch StarkPads are in a drawer in your lab. The only screens bigger are the permanent fixtures in your lab, sir." The dutiful AI replied.

"Thanks, J." He strode toward the elevator, "I'll be right back. Stay here."

When he returned the only thing that had changed was the lack of plates on the table. He held out the tablet, which had been designed so he could take his work out of the lab, to Thor. 

"Now, the screens are the most durable I could come up with, but they're no match for your strength, so please be gentle. The plans for your floor is preloaded, and tell Jarvis if you have a certain item you're looking for. I can always make something if we can't find it, so don't worry too much about that. You just tap the furniture you want, then tap where you want it to go. And you're more than welcome to change the wall colors too. I think that's it. Unless you need a demonstration?" Tony asked. 

"This device is very similar to the technology we had on Asgard when I was younger. I should be able to navigate it. And if I can't, I will just ask your voice, and he will help me." Thor smiled, picking up the tablet and gently carrying it over to the couch in the living room on the guest floor. 

"'When I was younger' is he serious?" Tony mumbled, looking down at his nearly empty mug. He drained it before refilling it. 

"Your Midgardian technology is outdated by our standards." Replied Loki. 

"It's the best in the world!" Argued the inventor, because he really only ever had the best. 

"And some of the worst in the realms. Oh don't look like that, it's not like you've had magic to help you along. Your realm is pathetic when it comes to magic, hardly any of you can control it. The ones who used to are all dead now." He admonished at the younger man's pout. "I want to work on my shapeshifting abilities today. To do that I need to be in constant communication with you, as one of your clauses was that I tell you what I look like when I shift."

Tony remembered why he wanted that rule, because seeing a stranger in his house was no doubt going to give him a heart attack. But he didn't want to be constantly asked either. Loki proved how irritating it was yesterday.

"Don't bother. You're welcome to shapeshift as much as you want until we go to sleep. I have an empty room near my lab if you want to use it." That would probably be a good fifteen hours from now, which should be plenty of time for whatever Loki was planning on doing. 

The trickster blinked, "Thank you, Stark. I believe I will make use of the room." Tony felt surprise dance down the bond. 

"Great. Hey, Thor! I'm heading down to the labs. Let Jarvis know if you need me for anything, or get in the lift and say you want to go down to my lab. Either works." He left after receiving a "Farewell, friend Tony."

~

Once the battle was over and clean-up started, Tony fixed the major dents in the Mark IV. It was the first thing that had to be repaired, but when he had finished the pain in his head had put a halt to the construction and upgrades.

Many of the joints were damaged, requiring either total replacement or such extensive repairs that he might as well just refashion the entire thing

He took inventory of the damages and started undoing the screws and bolts that kept the joints in place. As the rhythmic dismantling of the suit took place, Tony asked, "J, where does his phone say Bruce is?"

A map appeared on one of the unused screens in the workshop. "Dr. Banner appears to be in Virginia, sir."

"Call him. He's probably at some sucky SHIELD lab. He needs access to the good stuff, Jarvis. What kind of friend would I be if I let him continue like that? I'll tell you. A horrible one." 

The called ringed a few times before a soft voiced answered, " _Tony?_ "

"I got to the eighth ring, buddy. I was starting to think you didn't like me. You're working is a SHIELD lab, right?"

Bruce sighed, " _Yeah, they got me all of the data from Culver. I destroyed a lot of it, but I've been working on gamma suppressants that don't make me hallucinate._ "

"Are they making you sleep in a Hulk proof room?" Bruce's lack of answer was enough, "That can't be comfortable. Say you came to Malibu with me? I have a great lab out there, plus the house is a little out of the way, so even if you do go green it's not like you're going to hurt anything."

" _You're going to keep asking aren't you?_ "

"Well, yeah. How am I supposed to make pants for Hulk if you're not there? Besides, my lab is at least three times as good as SHIELD's and you don't even have to report what you're doing. There's a partial accelerator in the garage, Bruce. I built it myself." Tony paused, "C'mon. You know you would love to."

" _Fine. I'll ask SHIELD if I can go._ " the other voice sounded resigned. 

"I can't believe you're under house arrest." Tony chuckled as he popped the elbow joint out of its socket.

" _I am n--_ "

"Yeah, you are, Doctor Jekyll. So, let's blow this joint and head to my place? Or, one of my places. You can name drop if you want to. I normally don't let people do that, you're special."

" _You're a pain. Just. Let me save my work here and then I'll go file a request._ "

"I'm going down tomorrow, Sweetcheeks. You're coming whether it's approved or not." Tony paused, "Oh my god, that was the worst accidental sex joke I think I've ever made."

Bruce groaned, " _Yeah. Yeah it definitely was._ "

"But you are coming. And I have another guest with me and you're not going to be happy to see them, Brucie. Jolly Green might, but you're not." He was going to tell Bruce in person, the Hulk liked him and he wasn't going to let some underpaid SHIELD lackey deal with the fallout if he got too upset. 

" _What? Who does he like that I don't?_ "

"You're twisting words, baby. I didn't say anything about him liking my guest, I said he'd be happy to see him. Two completely different things and you know it." The left elbow joint joined the right on the table. 

" _Did you kidnap someone? Tony, I swear to God, if you did put them back where you found them._ " he sounded long suffering and they hadn't even been talking for twenty minutes. 

"Are you restricting my kidnapping privileges? Because it only happened that one time with the August model and she did say yes before hand. Consensual kidnapping."

" _Jesus._ "

"So, Noonish. I'll meet you at the SHIELD airport, so just turn in the forms and stay the night there. Or maybe don't sleep there. Their guest services ranking is like in the hundreds. That isn't a good thing."

" _Noonish. SHIELD airport. Got it. Hanging up now. Forms to fill out, research to save. You know the drill._ "

"Bye, Honey. I'll see you and the kids tomorrow." 

" _I am going to regret this, aren't I?_ "

"If I told you, it would ruin the surprise. Now. Forms. Science. Noon. Tomorrow. It was lovely chatting. Have a nice day."

Bruce hung up.

"He hung up on me, Jarvis. How are we supposed to have a fulfilling relationship if he hangs up on me without even saying good-bye?" He pouted. 

"I do not know, sir. Why don't you ask Dr. Banner about you're relationship the next time you see him?" The flat voice conveyed sarcasm, and that was by far Tony's proudest achievement. 

"Are you suggesting that it wouldn't have worked between us? I am _hurt_ , J. The two of us would have had a torrid affair and we would have loved it. I think." He took his attention from the elbows and turned to search for his five eighths socket wrench. "Hey, where's the five eighths socket wrench?" On the table. "Where's Dummy when you need him? I miss him. Maybe he won't go to scrap parts. He keeps me from having to do all this turning and searching. I didn't sign up for this. I made a robot or three so I wouldn't have to."

"Dummy, You, and Butterfingers are all residing in Malibu, as you very well know, sir. The exercise will do you good until we arrive in California."

"Are you calling me fat? I'll have you know that I was voted sexiest bachelor multiple times. Including last year." 

"I am suggesting no such thing, sir. I am merely commenting on how your fitness level compares to Captain Rogers or Agent Barton." The voice deadpanned. 

"You're horrible, I have a heart condition. I'm donating you to a community college while I make an AI that doesn't back talk." Tony sniped. 

"As you wish, sir."

"Turn on my playlist, J. It's too quiet. If Loki comes tries to come in, notify me and hide the Mark IV. Although I am really considering just scrapping it because everything needs repaired and it would cost the same amount to just build another from scratch."

He didn't expect the AI to answer, he hardly ever did if it concerned the suits. Tony suspected that it was his way of agreeing with Pepper and disapproving of the risk. 

Disapproval that was completely justified considering he actually _died_ six months previous.

The volume on his music turned down, "Sir, you asked to be informed if Mr. Loki appeared to be going to your workshop."

"Okay. Uhm. Take the Mark IV and put it back in its slot. Don't let him in until I say so." He picked up the joints and hid them in a secure drawer. It probably wouldn't keep the God of Mischief out.

He looked around and nothing seemed horribly out of place, and nothing incriminating or revealing was scattered around. 

"Get me what Thor's working on, all his furniture on the screen." The new additions lit up his screens, and damn if Thor didn't have good taste. A little rustic, but hey, he wasn't from around here. He could hardly be expected to be up on the trends of today. "Okay, let him in, whenever."

The shop doors opened, near silent, the slight whoosh of air the only indication anything had moved. He ignored the entry for a few seconds, keep up appearances, and tendrils of nervousness flowed down the bond between the two. 

"Hey, Bullwinkle, what's got your unmentionables in a tw-- holy _shit_." His quip was interrupted when he turned around as he looked at a tall, slender woman. 

"Is this form pleasing?" He glanced down, "I need a body to meet everyone in your realm with, as I assume that they will not take too kindly to you cavorting with the thing that attempted to subjugate them." 

Loki's hair was maybe maybe twice the usual length, and had significantly more curl than normal, but retained it's color. His eyes stayed the same, vibrant shade of green, and that more than anything made Tony sure it was him and not some girl off the street, it was unnatural, the color and they weren't _human_. He had to be Tony's height, and retained none of the harsh lines associated with Loki, soft curves grabbed the unflattering t-shirt, just hinting at what could be there. His face was softer. 

"You look like someone who I would have taken home without a second thought before I had my change of heart." He smiled. "That was good, come on. Change of heart."

"So this is satisfactory? I based it off of what was considered attractive in Asgard." He said.

"Yeah. You look fine. Very bangable." 

Loki's lip curled in distaste as the body melted into his masculine form. "I do not enjoy being unprepared."

"Hey, what do you know. Being unprepared got us into this mess! Hey, J, how is our other guest? Is he hungry or anything? Bored? Has a desperate need to cause lightening? What time is it anyway? I think I'm hungry. Could probably eat." 

"Then let us go upstairs, you can 'order in' or I can try my hand at cooking a Midgardian meal." Loki suggested. 

"No, hell no you're not cooking. I'll order Indian or Thai." Indian sounded good. Thor might like naan. 

"Then come on. Put your machines to sleep and depart with me."

"Coming, baby. Give me a second."

Loki sighed, but turned to leave. 

"Lock the lab when I leave, J. Normal security. If you detect any unusual energy readings put it in complete lock down and only open it with my override code." Because Loki still had magic, and even if it was limited, there were probably loopholes. Loopholes he couldn't think of but the god was scrambling to find.

He heard the locks clicking into place as he left.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please, let me know what you think, if there are any major typos/someone being out of character/the wording is funny/plot holes/etc. 
> 
> Criticisms are appreciated.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Obviously, this ignores IM3, and Thor 2. We'll see about Ca:TWS.

Loki found the female body restricting. He needed Stark to help him find appropriate clothing, because he was not quite certain what went for casual on this Midgard. He still wasn't quite sure if what he wore was appropriate, and his partner would only be too willing to make a fool of him. The clothes he ended up wearing felt too tight, his hair caused sweat to accumulate on his neck, and his chest ached from the weight of his breasts.

Stark didn't stop chattering to the other scientist the entire flight or car ride to the house, and the noise caused a headache to begin poking his skull, a feeling that was not helped by his magic being sealed away. 

Picking up Doctor Banner had been terrifying; all too well he remembered what the green beast had done to him, snapping multiple bones that even Thor would have been hard pressed to create in such a short amount of time. Stark herded him onto a sleeker version of the plane he had traveled on when they first met, and they landed within a few hours before taking off towards his other home. He did not enjoy the idea of living with him for an indefinite amount of time. 

He did his best to hide it, and as far as Loki knew, he succeeded. The mortal had no where near the sensitivity Loki did when sensing emotions, and from him Loki felt nothing but excitement. Originally there was some nervousness when Loki introduced himself as Lucy, but it soon disappeared when the two men starting discussing fabric, of all things.

Loki knew that he would have to show himself to Banner, most likely as soon as he was settled in the house. He was unsure if the green beast would show up, but he was certain that the doctor would not take kindly to his presence, and in order to make him more comfortable Stark would deny him any magic. As it stood now, Loki could only use his magic to slip back to his usual Æsir form. 

Eventually the car turned into a drive way, leading up to a house that resided on the edge of a cliff, and he could feel the incredulity emanating from the scientist. Dread creeped into him, because how, exactly, did one prepare for a beating from a creature that was barely human? 

"Hey, it's casa de Stark!" Stark enthused, oblivious to Loki's discomfort. Or perhaps he just didn't care, and that would make more sense, because he was hardly an idiot.

"What do you even do with all this space, Tony? It has enough room to house the entirety of some of the villages I stayed in." Banner inquired, and Loki could see why. He may have been raised as royalty, but even his quarters did not contain such a waste of space. 

"I like all the openness." 

They were going to need that openness if Banner turned into the green monster once he found out Lucy's real identity. If the human didn't kill him first. 

"Wait until you see the lab and the work shop. And if you need some equipment, let me know, because if I can't build you a better one, then I can most certainly afford one." Stark's excitement started to affect Banner too. Despite his obvious discomfort with the excess of luxury, the anticipation to conduct research far outweighed the negative feelings. Loki could appreciate that, he once spent days holed up fine tuning his magic, aided occasionally by his mother.

"I had Jarvis set himself up in the house this morning, so by now he should be awake and running. Figurative running. Although he could run if he used one of the suits." Tony frowned, "Actually the suit looks silly if it runs. It was made for flying."

Tony parked in an underground garage, and herded them into an elevator much like the one at the tower.

"J, set up the lights leading to Bruce's room." They stepped out if the elevator, Banner focusing on where the lights were, Stark on Banner's reaction, and Loki pretended to be curious about his surroundings, as was appropriate for an idiot consort of Stark's.

Banner followed the lights, his meager possessions all fitting in the duffle bag slung over his shoulder. 

"Stay here." Stark ordered, before following him, chattering before he even got within two yards of the doctor. 

Loki moved to the massive couch, watching the hallway that the two men disappeared down. 

"Jarvis, when does Stark plan to have me show myself to Banner?" He could prepare. 

"Mr. Stark has given no indication as to when he would introduce you to Dr. Banner, Mr. Loki." 

"When I'm in this form, my name is Lucy Andersen." It wouldn't do to be over heard. 

"As you wish, Miss Andersen." 

"When do you expect them to return? I would like to stop anticipating the rejection and show him now." His nerves would be shot to Helheim and back if he waited too much longer. 

"Mr. Stark and Dr. Banner are making their way to the living room now, Miss Andersen." 

Loki blew out a puff of air, making the loose hair around his face flutter before settling back down. A few seconds passed before he could here the incessant babble of his mate.

Stark entered first, Banner trailing behind him. The inventor was gesticulating wildly, excitement leaking into his voice. The doctor looked thoughtful. 

"Dr. Banner, I have something I wish to show you." Loki interrupted. Stark quieted immediately, before protesting. 

"We haven't even eaten yet! Your demonstration can wait!"

He glared at the mortal, "You allowed me access to what I wish to show," the god stood up, "And if you dare take it away from me, I will make you regret it."

Banner cleared his throat, eyes darting between Loki and Stark. "What, uhm, do you want to show me? Because I can't really help you unless you..." He trailed off, his voice questioning. 

"Doctor, this is the third time that we've been together, fourth if you include being on the same structure, although I am unaware if you even remember the first." Loki started. 

"Were you in Harlem?" His look hardened, "Or are you with Ross? Because I'm not going back."

"Doctor, we met in Manhattan. It would be easier to show you. Please don't turn into the green monster, I hardly survived the first time." He picked at the magic keeping this form on, and merged back into his usual apperance. He was fairly certain that his facial expression was blank, although Stark may have been able to feel his apprehension and fear.

The doctor's eyes darkened before turning green, his breaths quickened.

"Bruce-y," Stark attempted damage control, "I really can explain. You watched Star Trek, right? Well you remember how Vulcans have bonds? And if they don't have bonds they die? It's kinda like that but no sex fest every seven years. Wait, Rock of Ages, is there a sex fest every seven years?" At the last statement, his mate looked... Unhappy at the prospect. 

Banner whipped his head toward the engineer, "What the hell? Tony, why are you talking about Star Trek when you have a mass murderer in your house?" Loki grimaced at the title. 

"If you listened, irreversible bond. Vulcan bonding. Did you even watch the original series? Because I get that its special effects and props kinda sucked, okay were downright awful, but it is the catalyst for the Star Trek franchise! You can't just skip it and move onto the movies!" 

"Irreversible.... bond. And it never occurred to you that he could kill you with magic?" Oh right, the doctor assumed he had magic. 

"Of course not, I immediately thought of it and see the little bracelets on his wrists? They say how much magic he can use, and what for. Like no dark magic, but he's allowed self defense and healing even when I say no magic."

"You never said that." Loki muttered, feeling his bindings loosen, easy to slip out under the right circumstances. 

"Really? Whatever that's the new rules. But my point still stands, he can't really hurt anyone on our side with his magic. And it's not like I agreed to this. But he made the migraines go away and I think he still had access to his magic in prison, so this is a downgrade."

Banner's eyes returned to their normal shade of brown, his breathing evened out. "Did it ever occur to you that he was lying to get out of prison?"

"Well, yeah. Didn't Romanoff say I was 'paranoid' and 'had trust issues'? But Thor was there, and we fought against his brother together and turning on family members who go to the dark side really shows who has their rights and wrongs sorted out. And he said the king of another realm, who hates Loki because apparently he tried to destroy them too, said that we're tied together until death do us part, which sucks because I mean, hello. Playboy." Loki glared at Stark, he didn't need this entire realm knowing his attempted erasure of Jötunheimr. 

"There was another world?" Banner made an exasperated noise, "And so you thought hey, let's keep the crazy mass murderer of three realms in your house?"

"Doctor," he felt the need to defend himself, "I did not choose Stark, nor he me. It is part of my heritage, one of which I wish had never manifested. Seperation causes the both of us incredible mental anguish. Do you wish to inflict that onto your friend if you imprison me somewhere else?"

Banner sighed, "You said Thor told you. So where is he now?"

"Off with his lady friend. Jan? Jamie? I don't know, her last name is Foster. He kept the skies clear for our flight. I can call her if you want to see for yourself."

"No. No I believe you. Do you intend to tell SHIELD?"

"Not for a while. He's only been here for what, three days? You're the first person I've told."

"Fine. _Fine._ You're shacking up with a homicidal Norse God who ruined more of New York than I did. Congrats Tony, you really know how to pick your house mates." He shook his head.

"We aren't shacking up! I have been celibate since the fiasco in Manhattan and I think it might be killing me! And did you miss the part where I said he hasn't even been here a week?"

Banner sighed. "You're an idiot." He turned to Loki, "I'm not going to tell anyone. But you're explaining the heritage thing to me later." Loki nodded. 

"Can I show you to the lab and the workshop then? It will be perfect for you to create life saving vaccines and stretchy, stretchy fabric plus whatever radiation stuff you want to study." Stark rushed. 

"Are you going to leave him unsupervised?" Banner asked. 

"He's not a child. Why? Do you want to watch him? Because I'm pretty sure Jarvis has it covered, right, J?" The inventor seemed to have to physically restrain himself from grabbing his friend'a hand and dragging him there. 

"I believe I am going to sleep. Do either of you plan to use the couch any time soon?" The openness of the living room was soothing.

"Make yourself comfortable. Now, Bruce-y, baby, let's go." He reached and gently grabbed the doctor, pulling him towards the lift, "Bullwinkle, don't set anything on fire, no malignant magic, no surprising anyone with your presence, and if you really can't sleep for, y'know, any reason, tell Jarvis and he will either get me or take you downstairs where I have a cot. Toodles, sweetie. Gotta go." The doors closed behind them. 

No malignant magic meant Loki's bindings almost disappeared. He walked around the house, debating the most useful spots to place protection wards, because it wasn't really safe here. No matter how good Stark thought his security system was, things could always slip through. If Loki wasn't already here he could have entered the premises without even trying. 

He attempted to procure a knife, mildly surprised when it actually appeared, but the moment he considered stabbing anyone with it, it vanished. attempting to project thoughts of safety he conjured it back. 

Loki always had good taste, and the knife was no exception. It had an elegant handle, richly adorned with carvings and shining metals, but not gaudy. The blade was short, but sharp, and would make it easy to gouge the wood around the windows. He didn't think he could tackle the entire house in one night, but he could start with this room, and then the bedrooms and where Anth--Stark worked later. Assuming the man would let him near it. 

He considered the runes he had available to him. What he used to put around the campsites when most of the warriors weren't looking. Alarms. Traps. Shields. Magic detections when it wasn't him. Malicious intent.Things to connect them. He created his own sigil that combined all six, but it was exhausting to use, especially when it was repeated over and over. He could usually attempt twenty or so before requiring rest. But in this case, perhaps it would be more effective. It adorned the walls in his old chambers at the palace.

He understood the doctor's displeasure, but he didn't have to be happy about it. If Laufey had suddenly shown up and explained that he was bonded to someone Æsir, Loki would likely have investigated to the best of his ability. And the Midgardian didn't have that. He had two sources of information, one of which could not be considered trustworthy, the other known to defend the accused. 

Loki rubbed his eyes. "Jarvis, may I have something to drink? Preferably with a large amount of sugar."

"There are various types of juice in the kitchen. There is also fruit if you are hungry." He wouldn't have thought that Anthony was the type for fruit, but perhaps he ordered it for the doctor. 

"Where is the kitchen?" Without verbally responding, lights lit up an path. He followed it. 

"Ah, thank you, Jarvis." The kitchen was spotless, mostly black with chrome accents. The granite counter contained a large bowl, filled with fruits that Loki wasn't even aware existed. He grabbed an apple, because he was certain he needed the sugar before he attempted to ward the room. If he had the fruit for energy, he wouldn't require something to drink.

Ten minutes later he left the kitchen, retracing his path to the living room. Half the room was windows, providing a wonderful view, but little protection. He strode over to the panel of glass, and withdrew the knife. He stood on the sill, reaching up into the top most corner and dragged the blade over the glass. Thin lines followed the tip, and Loki inscribed the handmade sigil along with one to reinforce the glass. He pulled the energy to fuel the marks from his reserves, and they glowed briefly before fading back into vague lines. The sorcerer repeated the process in all four corners before connecting them, creating a solid shield between the ocean and the room. 

He was fairly certain it would work, would protect him, but he wasn't sure. The god tried to summon an offensive spell, but was halted by the restrictions Anthony had placed. 

Deciding to test later, he placed the protection rune near all of the entrances. The last required more effort, the creation and powering of multiple runes taking it's toll on his strength. With the remaining dregs he connected them, feeling the last of his magic leave, and he stumbled onto the couch before passing out. 

~

Loki woke with a start, the room dark but for a small patch of artificial light shining down the hall. It provided enough light for the god to see his surroundings, and nothing seemed out of place. He stood and checked the runes he placed earlier, pleased to find them untampered before following the light to its source.

The source turned out to be the kitchen he had visited earlier, which now contained two scientists. 

"Hello, Sleeping Beauty." greeted the inventor. 

"Does that make you Prince Charming?" Loki replied. 

"You wish, princess." he gestured to Banner, "So, we were in the lab because I have a mighty need to show off, and Bruce here needs some real equipment, when some of the energy readers I use for... Well nevermind you don't need to know what I use them for, but anyway they started reading unusual energy levels, the likes of which we haven't seen since, oh, maybe six months."

"Do you have a point, Stark?" Loki asked, moving to sit on a bar stool.

The doctor answered him, looking slightly guilty, "We wondered if the fluctuations were due to malfunctioning equipment."

"I think that is the most _offensive_ thing you've ever said to me." interjected Tony. 

Banner ignored him, "But we went to go look at the cameras in the house to see if anything weird was going on and we see you carving stuff into the walls and muttering what I assume were spells. Everything glowed faint green before looking like innocuous etchings."

"Again, do you have a point to your rambling, Doctor?" Loki kept his voice neutral. 

"I, uh, want to take a look at your magic." he finished, speaking so quickly it must have been spoken in one breath. 

Loki raised an eyebrow, "Why?"

"Because I'm a physicist. It's what I do." Banner stated. 

Right. Wasn't the oaf's consort a 'physicist' too? He looked into her while on the planet during the invasion, and quite frankly he didn't see what made her so special. She would die within the century, the blink of an eye. Before his disdain could really build, he remembered he would be the same, except he would be practically dying with Stark. And that could be fixed, but would require intense planning. Because as long as Stark was alive, Loki was out of Asgard and its prison, and much of the court wanted his head for endangering the realm on Thor's coronation, for attempting to kill the All-Father, for attempting to kill the Golden Prince. 

The god hummed, tapping his fingers along the counter, "Do I have a choice in the matter? Or do you intend to threaten me so I comply with your, ah, request?"

The physicist blanched, shaking his head, "No, no, you can always say no. I just thought it might give you something to do." he spoke earnestly, and Loki believed him, insofar as much as he would not be forced. Using underhanded persuasion, now, that was a different matter entirely. 

"Then no. Not now, perhaps at a later date." He gathered just enough seidr to glow in his hand, "I am storing it to protect this dwelling. My safety is very important to me, I'm sure you understand." He waved the magic away. 

"Was that what you call going all fruit ninja my walls?" Stark replied indignantly. 

Loki's lip curled, "Your windows are stronger, and nothing can get in the room without me knowing it. It will soon be the entire house. Maybe even the entire property." He frowned, "I did not get the opportunity to test it. However, should anyone make the mistake of attacking it with magic, it will simply absorb the spell and use it to power the runes."

"Seriously? That's cool. I still don't like magic, but the energy conversion...." Anthony trailed off, "Wait does the ring work like that?"

"What ring? Tony, please tell me that ring isn't infused with magic." Banner was staring at Stark's hand, eyes focused on the band of metal. 

"What? Oh. Yeah, but from what I've gathered he dies if I die, and vice versa, so really, I believe him when he says that it's supposed to keep me from doing just that." Stark was stupid, correct this once, but _stupid_. He should have had Thor look at the ring, he should have refused to wear it, he should have done something other than just believe him. If the look on Banner's face was any indication, he felt the same way. 

"He is telling the truth." As he knows it. "And no, the ring does not. It deflects and sends the magic back to the one who sent it. More complex, certainly, but also much more useful in a fight." Loki used it more than once, and had always come out victorious. It was another spell he had fashioned on his own. 

Banner blinked, "You die when he does?"

That's what he got from the conversation? That was it? "In a way." He replied, voice conveying nothing. 

"And that doesn't _bother_ you? Isn't your life span five thousand years?" The doctor replied incredulously. 

"I am trying my best to stop him from dying soon. Hence the ring." Loki waved his hand in the general direction. He stood up, "I believe I am going to retire for the night. Do either of you require anything from me?" 

"Nope." Stark popped the 'p'. Banner just shook his head. 

"Then I shall see you on the morrow. Jarvis, please show me to my room." He strode out, ignoring the quiet "Do you sleep in the same room?" that he could hear only because he wasn't human.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The way I figure magic works is that either spells or symbols an be used. Thor says it's like science, and it is, because it's the conversion of energy into a specific task, such as healing, protection, or some Voldemort-esque shit. Asgardians and Jötuns can both channel it along with the elves, dwarves, and probably the fire giants. Or anyone but Midgard. 
> 
> Loki uses spells on the fly, in battle and when he needs something short term. He uses runes when he needs something to stay long term, or while he cannot keep constant vigilance over it, such as when protecting a camp, or when there is the constant threat of his magic being gone. To be the most effective they need to be placed every twenty or so feet, the closer the better. And a camp would probably be about 400 feet in circumference, maybe 200 if there weren't many people in it. 
> 
> As always, if you see any major typos/errors/plot holes/something i forgot to mention/if I did a crappy job writing a character please let me know. (I say "a character" but what I mean is Bruce is he very ooc?)
> 
> Your comments and criticisms are well appreciated.

**Author's Note:**

> This is something that I wrote a while back, and it's not anywhere close to being finished, although I am going to TRY and keep updating.
> 
> Please let me know if you see any typos or major grammar mistakes!


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